


Wizards-Secundo Ire

by NickelWick



Category: Tales of Arcadia (Cartoons)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gen, How Do I Tag, Jim doesn't have a shard in his heart, Minor Angst, Troll Jim, but the shard still exists oh boy, freaking love jlaire, mild violence, more Douxie and Jim interactions, more badass Troll Jim, more happy troll Jim
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:21:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28095327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NickelWick/pseuds/NickelWick
Summary: The last thing Douxie wanted was to see himself in a man bun again. But of course, with his luck, he has to deal with his past self and worry about getting himself, Steve, Claire, and Jim home safely without messing up the timeline.Meanwhile, Jim is very curious about this strange, powerful black shard he discovered...---<Or, a Wizards rewrite where Jim doesn't have a corrupted shard in his heart.
Relationships: Aaarrrgghh & Blinkous "Blinky" Galadrigal & Draal, Archie & Hisirdoux "Douxie" Casperan, Deya the Deliverer & Jim Lake Jr., Hisirdoux "Douxie" Casperan & Claire Nuñez, Hisirdoux "Douxie" Casperan & Jim Lake Jr., Hisirdoux "Douxie" Casperan & Merlin (Tales of Arcadia), Jim Lake Jr./Claire Nuñez
Comments: 62
Kudos: 108





	1. Spellbound

**Author's Note:**

> You know, I love Wizards. I really do. The animation is gorgeous, the story's great, and it made me cry. (Several times.)  
> That being said, it really needed more troll Jim. He was severely underused, and I really wanted to see him come in more. So, I hope this story fixes that.  
> Some lines of dialogue are taken directly from the show, and are obviously, not mine. They belong to Dreamsworks.  
> Enjoyyyyy

Douxie smiled as he gazed upon Camelot. The huge castle floated serenely in the night sky, the Heart of Avalon glowing brightly underneath it. The towers, the turrets…everything was the same as he remembered. It was like greeting an old friend. Steve and Toby’s awed remarks faded to background noise as he reminisced about the simpler times. Times when the air was clean, there was no buzz of traffic, and he could see every single star in the sky…

He was jolted from his memories when the flying boat spiraled down. The boat whizzed towards the main castle gate at breakneck speed.

“I say, coming in a little hot, don’t you think?” Archie yelled over Steve and Toby’s screams.

“Rubbish!” Merlin replied, urging the boat onwards. They landed roughly on the stone floor and quickly disembarked.

“Wow!” Toby and Steve exclaimed, eyes wide.

“It’s been nine-hundred years since I’ve last been here,” Douxie commented, his eyes roving around the wide hall. Golden griffins snaked around the imposing pillars, and ornate carvings decorated the walls. He scooped up Archie and placed him on his shoulder. “Hasn’t changed a bit. Except for the flying part, that is.”

“Nine-hundred years?! Ha! Aren’t you like, nineteen or something?” Steve scoffed.

“Give or take a few centuries,” Archie said, while Douxie just shrugged. His familiar morphed into his dragon form and took flight.

“So, how many things can your cat turn into?” Steve asked as Archie soared around the buttresses.

“That depends. How many things are there?”

Meanwhile, in another room, the Trollhunter was pacing anxiously.

“Jim, could you _please_ stop doing that? You’re making me nervous,” Claire complained.

Jim glanced at his girlfriend. She was leaning against a wall, arms crossed over her armored chest.

He sighed. “I’m sorry, Claire, it’s just…” he jiggled from foot to foot. “What if they were attacked by the Green Knight like we were? What if Toby, or Argh, was hurt? What if-”

Blinky placed a reassuring hand on Jim’s shoulder, stilling him. “Master Jim, I fear for Aarghaumont and Tobias as well, but they are most likely fine. Both are capable fighters, _and_ they have Merlin with them!”

“So did we,” Jim said quietly. They had barely survived their encounter with the mysterious ‘Green Knight.’ Some trolls were hurt…including Blinky.

His mentor noticed Jim’s eyes on his broken arm, and he shifted uncomfortably. “Well, we were unprepared. I’m sure they’ll be alright.”

“Thanks, Blinky. I hope so-” Jim heard a crash in the distance and stopped talking. His pointed ears perked up as he strained to hear. Was it just the knights messing around, or could it really be…?

An excited shout answered his question. Jim beamed. “It’s them!” he exclaimed. “It’s really them! Let’s go!” He scooped Claire into his arms and darted out of the room, Blinky right on his heels.

Over their journey to the Heartstone, Jim had taken to carrying Claire when they needed to get to places fast. Without her shadow staff, she just couldn’t keep up with Jim and the other trolls. She told him she felt bad he had to watch over her so much, but he didn’t mind. Since they didn’t have a lot of time to cuddle, he liked to think of this as a make-up.

Jim’s heart raced in excitement as they neared the voices. He was finally going to see Toby! His best friend! And Argh! It had only been a little over a month since he had left, but it seemed a lot longer. He missed Toby’s jokes, Argh’s hugs, and-

He took a deep breath and slowed down. Trolls, Jim discovered, were a little more…aggressive when it came to affection. And he didn’t want to accidentally hurt Toby out of excitement.

Claire eased out of his arms as Blinky finally caught up to them. The trio grinned at one another before approaching their friends.

“Uh, cool flying castle ship,” Jim could hear Toby say, “but what’s the grave danger you keep talking about?”

“Ah, there you are,” Merlin said, relieved. And there they were! Completely unharmed.

“Toby!” Claire and Jim shouted as they ran to their friends.

“Blinky!” Argh rumbled happily.

“Aarghaumont!” Blinky exclaimed.

And then they were in each other’s arms. It felt so _good_ to be with Toby and Argh again. It put his worries of the Green Knight far behind him. And gosh, he didn’t even realize how much he missed the _smell_ of them. Jim knew that sounded creepy and weird, but he didn’t know how else to describe it. Guess it was a troll thing. And unfortunately, there was another troll thing Jim wasn’t so fond of…

“Oh my gosh, Jim!” Toby cried, pulling away. Argh broke off the hug, confused. “Were you purring like Mr. Meow Meow PI just now?!”

Jim started and realized that he indeed was purring. _Loudly_. He groaned. “No…”

“Lying,” Argh boomed. “Purring good. Means Jim is very happy.”

Jim flushed an even deeper purple when Claire giggled, “He does it all the time. It’s adorable!”

“It is not,” Jim huffed, and crossed his arms.

“And it’s even cuter when he pouts.”

“So-so is that what Jim Lake disease really does?” Steve piped in, breaking up the reunion. “It turns you into a creep?”

“Oh. Hi Steve,” Claire replied flatly.

Jim sighed. “Hey, Steve. And no, it doesn’t. This,” he gestured at his body, “was magic. Courtesy of him,” he said, pointing at Merlin.

“No, I’m pretty sure it’s Jim Lake disease.”

“I think I’d know what a disease named after me does-”

“This conversation is absolutely thrilling,” Merlin interjected, “but we have more pressing, _end of the world_ matters to discuss.” He started walking away. “Come with me. I fear the answer to the mystery of the Green Knight lies in the past.”

* * *

“Dude,” Toby said as they traveled down a dimly lit corridor, “when did you get your armor off? I thought it was like, permanently superglued to you or something!”

“No, but it felt like it was,” Jim joked. He glanced down at his new clothes: a navy-blue hoodie and dark gray sweatpants. “Turns out the armor was just ‘protecting’ me. I was so scared of my transformation at first, that it thought I was in danger. It wasn’t until I felt safe in my new body that it finally came off. And then Claire had to go shopping, since my old clothes were ruined,” he frowned. He had really liked that blue sweater.

“Does this mean you’re finally okay with being a troll, Jimbo?”

“Yeah,” he grinned. “I am. Better than okay, in fact.”

“What happened to your shoes, though?” Steve interjected. He pointed at Jim’s large blue feet. One had four toes, and the other had five. Both had claw-like, nearly black nails. “Did she, like, forget those?”

“She did not,” Jim retorted. “Shoes just feel-uncomfortable, I guess. Besides, I like being able to feel the ground. My feet are a lot tougher now. Sharp rocks and stuff like that don’t bother me.”

“Is Claire’s armor magical too?” Steve asked. “And if it is, where can I get one? I’d totally rock that look.”

“It’s not for looks, Steve,” Claire sighed from up ahead. “And no, I have to wear thing twenty-four seven, since I can’t magically summon it like _some_ people.” She half-heartedly glared at Jim.

He shrugged. “Hey, it’s not my fault the amulet didn’t call you.”

“At least I don’t eat dirty socks like you do!”

The castle’s halls rang with the teen’s laughter as they walked. Douxie smiled at the group wistfully. Eternal youth did have its perks, but missing out on relationships…definitely not one of them. Sure, he’d known Zoe since forever, and he did have other mortal friends. But it was so _hard_ to watch them grow old and die, while he just…stayed the same. He didn’t distance himself, like some wizards, but he did try to avoid intimate relationships.

But he might have to make an exception with this group.

* * *

Several halls and corridors later, the group was led to a study. Ancient books lined the shelves, and a cauldron stood on the far end of the room. A vault with a face that resembled the Amulet of Daylight was embedded in the wall. Merlin placed a device that reminded Jim of a glasses case on a table.

“First, we should catch you five up on our own encounter with the Green Knight,” Merlin began.

“He was unstoppable,” Blinky shuddered. “We were scarcely a week’s travel away from the Heartstone, when we were ambushed. We barely escaped with our lives.” The troll unconsciously rubbed his broken arm.

“Even I couldn’t keep up with him,” Jim admitted. “He…he’s unlike anyone I’ve ever fought.”

“Indeed,” Merlin said gravely. “But we might have a clue as to who he is. The knight said one word that chilled me to the bone: Morgana.”

“I thought we kicked her bewitched butt to the Shadow Realm,” Toby said.

“He appeared unaware of that, but he bore the symbol of Camelot. Which is why I believe we must travel to the past. A great menace is coming, one not even I can face alone.” Merlin opened the case, and a blue, holographic sphere popped into existence. A timeline with no marks circled around it. “You are all now soldiers in the war for the realm of magic started centuries ago. Long ago, the realms of man and troll clashed in endless battle, until King Arthur decided to put a stop to it. He declared magic evil and hunted out witches and wizards. I gathered what few spell-casters I could under my protection.”

“Including myself, and, oh!” Morgana in her golden armor appeared in the sphere. “Morgana le Fay,” Douxie commented dryly.

“She was the finest student I ever taught…until she tried to kill me, that is,” Merlin sighed. “Luckily, in my all-seeing wisdom, I created a weapon to end the war: the Trollhunter Amulet.”

The amulet in Jim’s pocket seemed to grow heavier. It pulsed blue, as if to remind him it was there. _Cut it out_ , he thought, and surprisingly, the amulet obliged.

“…this Green Knight,” Merlin was saying, as Jim tuned back in to the conversation. “I have no remembrance of who he is, and what connection he has to Morgana. We have no idea why he is pursuing us, but he is surely a sign of darker things to come.”

As if on cue, the alarm bells started ringing.

* * *

“What’s happening?” Claire yelled as the tower shook.

“Surely you’ve been under attack before? To the battlements!” Merlin shouted, and broke into a run.

Jim had to hold back a snigger as Claire grumbled under her breath. She noticed and shoved him playfully, before following the wizard. They raced to the top of the tower and gasped.

“The Arcane Order,” Merlin uttered in horror.

A massive tower shaped like a skull floated in front of them. The group gasped at the sight. Two figures emerged from the depths of the fortress. Douxie shivered. He couldn’t see their faces, but he could sense them; one was boiling hot, the other, freezing cold. Their power was _enormous_. If his master thought he actually needed help for a change…

They really were in serious trouble.

Then Merlin shouted, “Get to safety! NOW!” startling Douxie. A beam of ice shot from the tower, heading straight towards them. “Fulgur praeca!” Merlin cried, and green ray boomed from staff. The two beams collided with one another, causing a massive explosion. Douxie and Merlin fell from the shockwaves, and the staff went sailing over the edge.

“I’ve got it!” Archie said, and dove after it.

A volley of cannonballs exploded from the fortress, smashing into Camelot. The castle manned its own cannons and peppered the enemy with dozens of cannonballs.

“We must flee!” Merlin warned as the wall next to them exploded.

“I’m on it!” Douxie yelled, and darted to the castle’s wheel. “I’ve got it, I’ve got it!” he grunted as he strained to steer the castle away from the fortress.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough. The Arcane Order’s tower smashed into Camelot, violently shaking the castle. Two beams of ice flew from the fortress, bridging the two floating edifices.

“Suddenly, flying castles aren’t so cool!” Steve squealed, nervously watching the ice.

A torrent of fire roared in their direction. “Watch out!” Jim yelled. But Steve was frozen, gawking at the fire like an idiot. “Steve, move!” he roared, pushing him out of the way. The fire shattered the wall of the tower, and Jim was sent flying back by the force of the explosion.

Jim desperately scrabbled for anything to stop his fall. His four-fingered hand curled around the edge of the battlement, and he used his momentum to swing himself back to solid ground.

“Jim!” Claire crashed into him and wrapped her arms around him. “Don’t scare me like that!”

“Sorry, Claire,” Jim said, returning the hug. “It scared me too.” He looked up and saw the rest of the group had caught up with them. He gently withdrew from the hug. “The explosion didn’t hurt me, but it rattled-” a horrible smell infiltrated Jim’s nose. He gagged. Off to the side, Argh was doing the same.

“Bad smell,” the large troll groaned.

“Those weird monsters wouldn’t be the cause of that smell, would it?” Claire asked nervously, peering over the edge of the battlement.

The group looked over the edge as well and gasped in horror. Dozens and dozens of goblins and blue and purple lizard-like creatures slithered along the bridges of ice. The strange creature’s glowing yellow eyes glared at them, and they snapped their three mandibles hungrily.

“What are those things?!” Steve screamed.

“Shadow Mephits,” Blinky trembled, and backed away from the edge. “Extremely vicious creatures, _and_ they can warp through space!”

“Probably need the amulet for this one,” Jim muttered as the mephits closed in on them. He lifted the amulet high and chanted the all too familiar words: “For the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command!” The amulet flared blue. As he was lifted into the air, orbs of light flooded into Jim’s chest. The silver armor appeared and fitted itself neatly onto his body. He dropped to the floor with a heavy clunk.

“Whoa,” Steve said in awe.

“Jimbo, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you as a troll in the OG armor,” Toby exclaimed, eyes wide. “But you look so freaking cool! Like, your skin color even matches it? You could be a troll supermodel!”

Jim couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, I’m sure the potion specifically gave me blue skin to match my armor.” He spotted a mephit behind Claire, quickly summoned Daylight, and sliced through the monster. The two severed ends plopped on the stone with a wet thunk. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the only one. More mephits and goblins were swarming over the battlements. “But much as I enjoy your fanboying over my armor, we should probably focus on these guys for now.”

“Right, right,” Toby agreed. He extended his weapon, cried, “Warhammer time!” and smashed it down on a mephit. The group engaged in battle. Claire yelled as she grabbed a goblin and used it to hit the other monsters. Blinky punched several goblins off the battlements, while Argh ripped the mephits in half and tossed the pieces over the edge. Even Steve was helping, using a gauntlet to whack some goblins, screaming, “Die, creeper!”

Jim stabbed a mephit and flung it over the edge. He twirled Daylight before slashing through several more of the lizard-like beasts. At the sight of several approaching goblins, Jim summoned his glaives and threw them. The goblins exploded into green goo. A mephit crawled onto his back, hissing. Jim growled and judo-flipped it. He caught his glaives, connected them, and stabbed the mephit. It screeched, and Jim watched in satisfaction as the light died from its eyes.

No matter how many goblins or mephits they killed, they just kept coming. They couldn’t keep this up forever. It was an endless tide of monsters. Jim stepped off the mephit’s corpse and looked desperately up at the keep of the castle. “Come on, Merlin…”

Douxie shot a blue ball of magic at a flying cannonball. Where was Archie with the staff?! They needed-ah! “Archie, find the staff, or we’re all dead!” he shouted at his familiar, who was flying overhead.

“What do you people think I’m doing?” Archie protested as he swooped down.

“Archie, I’m running out of time here!” Merlin yelled, vainly hacking at one of the ice bridges.

“Got it!” Archie called from below.

 _Yes!_ Douxie cheered, but an ominous chuckle from the ice bridge halted his celebration.

A blue-skinned man floated across the ice bridge. He was dressed in a long, tattered cloak, and a skull with horns decorated his head. A strange scythe-like weapon was in his hands. Ice-cold magic radiated from him in waves. “Surrender, Merlin!” he taunted in a raspy voice.

“Never!” his master shouted, and readied himself for battle.

“Merlin!” Galahad yelled from atop his frozen tower. “Get everyone to safety!” The old knight unleased a war cry and steered the tower towards the ice bridges.

Douxie felt his heart stop. “No,” he whispered.

His master jumped to safety as the tower crashed through the ice bridges, severing their connection to the Arcane Order’s fortress. Chunks of ice smashed into the castle, causing the entire thing to tremble violently. Douxie grabbed onto the wheel for balance. He couldn’t believe it. Galahad…Galahad was dead. He was never too close to the old man, but he respected him. He couldn’t imagine what his master was going through right now…

“Hisirdoux! Now!” his master ordered, startling Douxie from his thoughts. He frantically opened the time map and repositioned his hands on the wheel. He heard footsteps behind him and risked a glance back. Jim, Steve, and Claire were on the keep with him. Great. Now he had an audience. Douxie gulped. “Please don’t blow us up, please don’t blow us up…”

“We don’t have enough power for the jump!” Archie warned him.

“Trust in Merlin!” _And I hope he knows what he’s doing!_

Suddenly, the Heart of Avalon started whirring. It picked up speed, spinning faster and faster until it was nearly a blur. The green glow intensified, and magic flared outwards. Douxie shivered as the magic passed over him. Whoo! Felt good, but weird, too.

A beam of green magic shot from the Heart, ripping a hole in the night sky. In that tear between time was a clear blue ocean. And above the sea…

“Camelot,” Douxie breathed. The Camelot _he_ remembered, from so long ago.

It was beautiful.

 _Focus, Douxie!_ Douxie shook his head and gripped the wheel tightly. “We have to steer Camelot through the time rift!” he yelled, clenching his teeth as he strained to direct the castle. Claire and Steve stepped forward to help and started turning the wheel with Douxie. Jim was just about to lend a hand when a familiar scent tainted the air.

Jim growled. “It’s the Green Knight. I’ll be right back.”

“Wait, Jim! No!” Claire cried. But it was too late. Jim had already jumped off the keep and was racing to Merlin. On a battlement, Toby, Aargh, and Blinky were keeping the mephits at bay, but they wouldn’t last much longer. They had to get out of here, _now_.

After slicing through several goblins, Jim reached the wizard. “You should be with the others. What are you doing here, boy?” Merlin demanded, eyes trained on the skull of the fortress, which was slowly opening.

“I lost to this guy once, and trolls got hurt. It’s not going to happen again,” Jim snarled.

“Alright, but if I tell you to go back to Hisirdoux, you must go. Understood?”

Jim summoned Daylight. “Yep.”

The skull fully dropped open, revealing the Green Knight. He stared at them with dull yellow eyes. Jim felt an animalistic growl rising in his throat, but he forced himself to swallow it down. _Focus, Jim!_ He had to be smart here. He couldn’t afford to go full-troll mode. He needed his human side _and_ his troll side for this battle.

But the Green Knight didn’t attack them. He just stood there silently, watching. His gaze roamed over the castle and settled on Jim. Coldness washed over Jim, and he shuddered. He did not want to be this thing’s center of attention. He was staring at him almost… _hungrily_.

Eager to break the silence, Jim began, “What do you think-”

Quick as a whip, the Green Knight sliced his sword through the air. Shards whished through the air, heading straight towards Jim and Merlin. “Get down!” he roared, pushing Merlin to the ground. In a flash of blue, he called his shield up.

Just in the nick of time, too. As soon as the shield appeared, the shards thudded against it. Jim braced himself for another attack, but none came. He peeked over the rim of his shield. Okay…the knight wasn’t making another move. He dismissed his shield, and the shards fell on the stone harmlessly. Curious, Jim stooped down and picked up one of the shards. It seemed to be made from some kind of black rock, but that wasn’t what caught his attention. The shard radiated darkness and evil, and every part of him screamed to drop it, but it was strangely enticing. There was just so much _power_ in it, and it was calling to _him_ -

“It ends,” the Green Knight boomed, and he pointed his sword at Camelot. Jim shoved the shard into his armor’s pocket and readied himself for whatever he would throw at him. A beam of ice shot from one tower, a stream of fire from the other. The elements collided with the Knight’s own swirl of sickening yellow and black magic. They merged to form a massive ball of destruction. “Now!”

Well. He couldn’t exactly fight against that.

“Oh, sod it all,” Merlin groaned. The magic exploded into Camelot with a burst of red, blue, and yellow fire. The whole castle trembled violently, and one of the towers started to crumble away from the main edifice. This was it. They were done for.

“Go back to Claire and Hisirdoux!” Merlin ordered.

“How?! There castle’s falling apart!”

“Simple! With magic!” Merlin raised his hands. “I may not have my staff, but I still have some tricks up my sleeve. Be prepared for a bumpy ride!” Green magic surrounded his hands. The magic flowed from his hands and surrounded Jim’s entire body.

Jim frowned. “What are you-AH!” he screamed as he was jerked abruptly into the air.

“Protect them, Trollhunter!” Merlin yelled. “Protect them with your life!” He thrust his hand forward, and Jim was sent flying back to the keep.

“Are you serious?!” he shouted as his body smashed into several turrets and battlements. _This is more than just a bumpy ride!_ he complained mentally. With an _oof_ , he crashed onto the floor of the keep…only to find himself sliding backwards. “What the-woah!” And then he was slipping down, down, down. He scrabbled desperately for anything to hold on to. His fingers finally found purchase on a rampart, and he clenched it tightly. His body dangled precariously over the time rift.

“Jim?!” Claire’s frightened voice asked.

 _Oh no_. She couldn’t possibly be here…he swiveled his head to the voice, and he sighed. There she was, clinging to the rampart next to him. Douxie was there too, as was Steve.

“Nice hangout, right?” Jim joked, trying to lighten the situation. Claire’s glare told him that this was no time for jokes. “Sorry.”

“What do we do, man?” Steve shrieked.

“Trust me!” Douxie answered, and grabbed Claire’s wrist. Jim’s heart stopped. He wasn’t going to-

“AHHHHH!” Claire screamed as she and Douxie fell into the time rift.

“CLAIRE!” Jim roared. He released the rampart and dived after Claire, not caring whether Steve was following or not. He blinked, and suddenly, it wasn’t nighttime anymore. His eyes widened. Oh crap. _It wasn’t nighttime anymore_. The sun seared his skin, and he screamed in pain. It _burned_. Oh, _God_ , it burned so much. It felt like fire was dancing over his skin. The fire beat along his face, horns, even underneath his armor. He screamed again. He could feel his skin hardening, turning to stone-

A black portal appeared in front of him. He barely had time to register it through the pain before he fell through. Darkness consumed his vision for a split second, and then he was lying on dirt. He inhaled the scent of leaves and earth and moaned in relief. The flaring intensity of the sun was gone. Yeah, the pain was still there, but it was steadily ebbing away.

With difficulty, he rolled over. Ah. _That’s_ why he couldn’t feel the sun’s rays. He was lying under a canopy of trees in an unfamiliar forest. But how did he get here? He furrowed his brow, concentrating. That weird portal looked like the ones Claire used to make, but that was impossible. She didn’t have her shadow staff anymore, so she couldn’t do magic anymore.

Right?

* * *

Douxie gaped at Claire, barely feeling the wind whistle through his hair. Did she-did she just use _shadow_ magic just now?! Without a magical object of any kind?! He would’ve thought he was seeing things, but her eyes were still as black as his sweatshirt.

“Douxie, do something!” she shouted, her glowing purple eyes flaring in panic.

Douxie shook his head. “R-right,” he stuttered, the wind taking his breath away. He could worry about that later. Right now, he had to make sure they didn’t end up as pancakes. He held out his hands, and his bracelet started glowing blue. “Come on, come on!” he gritted his teeth. It was so hard to focus! He didn’t think he could-

A blue shield flickered in front of them. “This is gonna hurt!” he warned as they fell against it. The shield slammed into their bodies, before disappearing. They went into a freefall again, only to be stopped by another shield.

“It-does-hurt!” Steve screamed with each respective shield.

Finally, they crashed onto the ground. Douxie groaned. His body hurt all over, but at least they were alive.

“What just happened?” Steve asked, whimpering.

“Well, I just conjured an anti-gravity spell to slow our fall and keep us from dying. _You’re welcome_ ,” he grunted as he sat up. The bushes next to them rustled, and Douxie shot to his feet. He raised his hands in anticipation. They were in unfamiliar territory. There was no telling what was going to come at them-

The Trollhunter burst from the bushes, shaking the leaves from his hair. Upon seeing them, his face broke into a fanged smile. “Claire!” he cried in glee, and ran over to her. “You’re okay!”

“And so are you,” she beamed as he stooped down next to her. “I was worried you wouldn’t-wouldn’t make it. It’s daytime, after all.”

Jim frowned. “Yeah, about that. Did you-”

“Guys, where’s the flying castle?” Steve squealed. “I thought it was supposed to follow us!”

Douxie looked up at the sky, and his heart skipped a beat. Camelot was not there. “Fuzz buckets,” he cursed. “It appears we’ve had ourselves a temporal accident.”

“Which means…” Claire trailed off expectantly. A sword sliced through the air and hovered in front of Douxie’s throat. He gulped and raised his gaze slowly. An armored knight stared him down. The horse he was mounted on pawed the ground, which only succeeded in making Douxie feel smaller. And he wasn’t alone. More than a dozen knights circled them, swords and spears bared threateningly.

“We’re lost in time.”

Growling erupted from behind Douxie, and he whipped his head around. Jim’s hackles were raised, and his ears were flattened beside his head. A knight took a step forward, and he let out a snarl.

“Cut it out!” Douxie hissed at him. “We can’t afford to fight right now!”

“I could take them all,” Jim answered, eyes darting from knight to knight. “Easily.”

“I’m sure you could, but not before one of us-” _mainly Steve_ , he thought, “would get hurt. You’ve got to-”

“Surrender, troll!” the knight on the horse commanded. “Or we’ll kill you where you stand.”

“I’d like to see you try,” Jim growled.

Claire placed a calming hand on his chest. “Jim, please. Listen to Douxie. We’re outnumbered, we have no idea who these people are, _and_ we’re lost in time. Unless they actually start attacking us, I-I think we should stand down.”

Jim stared at her for a long time before finally slumping in defeat. “Okay.” He raised his hands. “I, uh, surrender.”

The knights instantly converged on Jim. They slapped iron handcuffs on him and started shoving him towards a wheeled cage. Jim growled in protest but made no move to stop them. As he stepped into the cage, he shot Douxie a look that said, _I hope you know what you’re doing_.

Honestly, he hoped he did too.


	2. History in the Making

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Jim jumps out a window.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sweet mother, this chapter took a lot out of me. It's a LOT longer than I thought it would be, but it was so worth it. I basically wrote this like a speedrun lol. 
> 
> I also want to say thank you guys so much for leaving all your kind comments and kudos! I'm glad you love this idea as much as I do. I hope you like what these future chapters have in store!
> 
> Some quotes are taken directly from Wizards and are obviously not mine. They belong to Dreamworks. 
> 
> Enjoyyyyyyyy

The wheeled cage shuttled past the portcullis, giving the group their first look (excluding Douxie) at medieval England. Camelot, currently grounded, loomed over the surrounding city, its windows gleaming in the sunlight. A stone fountain burbled gushing water in the center of a square. Small cottages and huts surrounded it, and peasants in tattered clothing wandered towards the soldiers curiously.

One bearded man peered at Jim and gasped. “A troll!” he exclaimed, eyes wide. “It looks like the spawn of the devil himself!”

Anger surged through Jim, and he roared in fury at the man. The man shrieked and scurried from the cage as fast as he could.

One soldier banged on the cage. “Quiet, you!” he demanded. “Or we’ll take the cloth off and expose you to the sun.”

Jim growled, but said nothing else. Probably best not to aggravate these guys further.

“I’m not saying that wasn’t justified,” Douxie piped up, “but losing it at random commoners really isn’t going to help your case. I’m amazed we’ve gotten this far as it is, so I’d rather not push our luck any further.”

Claire sighed. “As much as I hate to admit it, I agree with Douxie. Next time someone insults you, just leave it to me, okay?” she gave him a reassuring smile.

“Sorry,” Jim huffed. Douxie was right. He really should have ignored that guy, but the hot, stuffy cage was making him irritable. Not to mention that even with the cloth, he felt way too exposed to the sun.

But still…Jim wasn’t one to lose his temper like that. It was unnatural. So why-?

“Ah! And there’s the tower where I nearly fell to my death trying a flight charm,” Douxie chirped, breaking Jim from his thoughts. “If it wasn’t for Archie, I wouldn’t have lived to see the golden age of rock and roll.”

Claire giggled. “Honestly, Douxie, how many near-death experiences have you had?”

Jim frowned, a low growl building in the back of his throat. Luckily, he realized what he was doing before either of them heard and quickly stopped. Even though he didn’t know Douxie well, he seemed like a decent guy. Really, he did. But even when Jim was a human, he was jealous of the boy’s smooth charm. Now, he had heightened trollish emotions that made very… _protective_ around Claire. He knew she would never leave him; she loved him too much for that. But that still didn’t stop him from getting defensive, and Douxie wasn’t helping matters.

“So, uh, Douxie,” Jim said, interrupting their conversation. “When are we going to get inside the castle? The sun is making me antsy.”

“Any moment now-”

As if on cue, Steve’s “angel man” shouted, “Open the gate! We have foreigners awaiting judgment for King Arthur.”

“No worries,” Douxie said, straightening an imaginary tie, “Camelot’s my old turf. Just follow me lead. Be inconspicuous.”

The party rolled into the cool shade of the castle, and Jim sighed in relief. Wow, he really had been tense, hadn’t he? Maybe that’s why he had gotten so angry at that man.

After travelling through the main hall, the group entered a large circular room that Douxie told them was the throne room. Golden, snake-like bands raced across the floor, and arches surrounded the sides of the room. Jim couldn’t see the actual throne, though, as the cloth obscured the view.

A couple soldiers approached the door to the cage. “Now, we’re going to let you out. No funny business, or Arthur will have your head,” one warned.

Jim rolled his eyes. “Fine. Just get me out of here.”

“And show some respect!”

Jim unsteadily wobbled out of the cage. He was in there for so long that his legs had fallen asleep. It was strange that that was one of the human traits he had kept after his transformation. But he was glad for it anyways.

As the cage trundled away, he raised his eyes to the throne. While the throne itself was small, two enormous slabs of stone protruded from the back. Two dragons were carved on them, stony scales flashing in the sunlight.

_Wait. Sunlight?!_

Jim’s mouth went dry, and his heart started beating wildly in his chest. He barely registered the fact that he was roughly pushed to his knees by a couple soldiers. Even as their tough hands clapped on his shoulders, locking him in place, his attention was entirely focused on the sun. He couldn’t have just escaped it, only to face it yet _again_.

Man, his life really sucked sometimes.

“Gunmar’s threatening our borders,” a man boomed, distracting Jim from his worries. “Double our patrols!”

“Here are the trespassers, my lord,” Steve’s “angel-man” said, walking behind the group.

“A troll?” the man observed. Jim raised his eyes to face their prosecutor. Oh yeah, he was definitely the one in charge. He was enormous, and his build was exemplified by his pearly-white armor with gold engravings. A golden crown with a blue diamond adorned his head. He had a thick blonde beard, and his blue eyes glared at Jim coldly. “I thought I made it clear your kind are unwelcome when I banished you all from the realm.”

“Don’t you mean ‘betrayed’?” a woman’s voice accused.

A tall, slender woman stalked to the king. Braided auburn hair that reached past her waist swayed against her maroon and green dress. But that voice. Jim knew it well, and he hated it. Could it possibly be-

“Morgana,” Claire hissed. His girlfriend made a move to the witch, but Douxie held her back.

“Inconspicuous, remember?” he whispered.

“You gave the woods to enchanted creatures like these,” Morgana declared, gesturing to Jim. “You’d break that vow?”

Jim couldn’t believe that she was actually defending him. It was weird to think of the sorceress as anything other than a murderous lunatic. But he guessed-wait. Morgana was the sister of freaking _King Arthur_. So that meant-

“These beasts care not,” King Arthur scoffed. “Especially not this spy of Gunmar’s!”

Rage sparked in Jim. “Stop calling me a beast!” he snarled, and rose to his feet. Then realization dawned on him. “Wait, Gunmar?” His confusion allowed the soldiers to push him down once again.

That was when Douxie decided to step in. Things were going pretty poorly, to say the least. While his speech eloquence was all but nonexistent, he was, unfortunately, the only one who could get them out of this.

“Your highness,” he began, his voice cracking. _Fuzz buckets,_ he thought sourly. _That was embarrassing._ “Ahem,” he said, hoping to regain some shred of dignity, “it’s good to see you again.” He offered a small bow.

“And you are?”

“Hisirdoux, Merlin’s apprentice,” he answered, straightening his back. “I assure you he is no threat.”

“That is my judgment to make, _boy_ ,” Arthur said coldly.

“Trolls are born of magic,” Morgana interrupted. She held out her hand, and a glowing orb of golden magic flowed from it. It circled around Jim before whizzing to Arthur. “As you are of blood.” The orb formed into a flower. “How is their nature a crime?”

“When they ravage our lands,” Arthur spat, waving away the flower. “Take our loved ones from us.” The petals of the fallen flower flew into the empty, smaller chair next to him. “I made these laws to hold this fragile land together, and they will be abided! Leave the wood, the penalty is death!”

“What? No, no wait!” Jim cried, fear coursing through his chest as the soldiers dragged him to his feet. Even though he could easily break free, he was terrified that his escape would make the situation worse for his friends. “You don’t know what you’re doing!”

“Whoa, whoa, hold on,” Douxie said desperately, “isn’t this a bit hasty?”

“Bring him to the sunlight,” Arthur ordered.

“Jim, no!” Claire cried helplessly. Jim felt like he was watching his body from afar. He tried to order his limbs to move, to do _anything_ , but he was frozen. He could only watch in horror as he was pushed closer and closer to the deadly sunlight.

Then the light hit his face, and the pain broke him from his stupor. He roared and ripped his arms free from the soldiers’ hold. He backhanded the soldiers, sending them flying. They landed with a crash onto the cold, hard floor.

Oops. He accidentally overdid _that_.

“Restrain him, and push him back into the sunlight!” Arthur demanded.

The clanking of metal footsteps filled the room, and he looked around fearfully. There were almost thirty soldiers in the throne room now, and they were all thundering towards Jim. He could defeat them without a problem, but he didn’t want to hurt them. Troll strength is horrible for human health. Jim would know.

He turned to Arthur, who had his hand settled on his sheath. Jim gulped. He didn’t want to think what powers a sword like Excalibur had, and he wasn’t too keen on having Daylight shattered again.

“Jim, please!” Douxie whispered. It was so quiet a normal human wouldn’t hear it, but Jim could. “Let me handle this. We can’t afford to mess up the timeline more than we already have!”

But Jim wasn’t listening. His mind had entered “fight-or-flight” mode, not “think rationally” mode. He stared at his enemies, eyes wide, the stench of anger from them overpowering. Blood roared in his ears. He could see every detail in the room, from the etchings in Excalibur to a single sweat drop sliding down a knight’s face. Either he was going to snap and fight every single person here, or lose it and run like the wind.

“Give up, beast,” Arthur rumbled. “You have nowhere to run.”

That horrible, all-too-true sentence made Jim abandon all logic. With a fearful yell, he dashed through the sunlight, shoved Arthur aside, and leaped through the window.

* * *

It was complete chaos. Claire shrieked, frantically trying to break free from the soldier restraining her. The other knights shouted and rushed to the broken window, crowding the throne. Arthur’s face was beet-red, as the Trollhunter’s push had shoved him to the floor. His crown lay askew on the floor. All in all, he looked rather undignified, and Morgana looked like she was reveling in it.

But Douxie just couldn’t believe it. Had Jim-had he really committed _suicide?_ Had he really not trusted Douxie? Or had he thought Douxie wasn’t capable of helping him? Guilt filled his stomach, and he felt like he wasn’t going to throw up.

“Out of the way!” Arthur roared, jamming the crown back onto his head and pushing through the crowd. “Let’s see if the beast is truly dead.”

He leaned over the window. The next few seconds felt like an eternity. Douxie waited with bated breath. _Please_ , he begged, _please be alright. Don’t be de-_

“It is dead!” Arthur cried in triumph, lifting Excalibur high. “Its stony remains below prove its demise!” The other knights followed suit and cheered, brandishing their weapons.

A small hand grasped Douxie’s wrist. He started and looked down, only to be met with Claire’s teary face. “Please, Douxie,” she begged. “He-he _can’t_ be dead. He wouldn’t leave me like that. Can you-can you see if he’s alive, somehow? Please?”

He swallowed. “I-yes, I think I can. Just-give me a moment.” Douxie turned away from her and desperately started tapping the runes on his bracelet. “Please be alive,” he whispered before thrusting his hand forward. Nothing happened. And if this spell couldn’t find his signature, then Jim really was-

A blue flame flickered in front of Douxie’s hand. It was quite small, but it was burning strong. “Yes!” he shouted. Some soldiers turned and stared at him quizzically. “Uh, just excited over this new spell I mastered,” he stammered. “And of course, that the troll is dead!” he said, giving a thumbs-up. The soldiers shrugged and looked away. He quickly snuffed out the flame.

“I take it that means he’s alive?” Claire asked hopefully.

“Indeed it does,” Douxie beamed at her. “Don’t know how, he was fully exposed to sunlight...but that spell was proof enough.”

“Thank you, Douxie!” Claire gushed, and hugged him tightly. “Thank you. I knew he would survive.”

“No problem,” he smiled as he returned her hug. “I just hope he doesn’t cause too much trouble out there…”

* * *

Claire smoothed her dress down for what must’ve been the hundredth time that day, and she had only been wearing it for _half an hour_. “How did girls wear stuff like this twenty-four seven?” she growled as she struggled up the stairs.

Okay, she had to admit, it was kind of cool to wear an authentic medieval dress. It made her costume from _Romeo and Juliet_ look like a cheap replica. But it was so hard to move in it! Not to mention it was pretty hot with all the layers. She longed for some simple jeans and a T-shirt. Just another reason for them to find Jim and get the heck out of here.

She sighed. Jim…where was he? He was probably hurt and scared out of his mind. He may be a troll, but his emotions were still very, very human. What if he-

Claire pinched her arm. “Snap out of it, Claire!” she hissed. “Jim can handle himself! Just think of this as when he went to the Darklands…” she shuddered. Actually, no. That was a terrible comparison.

She looked up, only to realize she was totally lost. Great. “Excuse me,” she said to a young girl scrubbing the floor, “but do you know where Morgana’s chamber is?”

The maid sat up and wrung the dirty cloth. “You’re her new handmaiden, aren’t you?”

“Unfortunately.” Claire was _not_ happy to be working under that-that _witch_ , but she had no other choice. Douxie said they all had to act their roles, so she would just have to suck it up. She just hoped he would get that time map from Merlin soon.

The maid bit her lip. “It’s just up there,” she said, nodding her head in that direction. “Two doors down, next to the balcony.”

“Okay. Thank you-”

“Please be careful,” the maid pleaded. “Her previous handmaidens…strange things happened to them. They claimed their shadows were following them, and they said they had horrid nightmares. She is an evil witch, remember that.”

“Oh, trust me,” Claire started walking up yet another flight of stairs, “I know.”

Several stairs later, Claire finally reached Morgana’s door. She hesitantly pushed it open. “Uh, Morgana?” she called, entering the room. It was so dark she could barely see, but a little light trickled in from some stained-glass windows. Stacks of books littered the floor. Iron cages with glowing purple geodes hung from the ceiling. “Reporting for handmaiden duty.”

She walked further into the room when there was no sign of the witch. “Hello? Morgana? Seriously, is anyone home?”

As her eyes roved the room, her gaze fell upon several oddly shaped skulls. Then she saw what was below them, and she gasped.

“The shadow staff,” she whispered. She looked around the room warily before reaching out to grab it.

Suddenly, the candles burst into flame. The fireplace roared to life, illuminating Morgana as she strode into the room. “Aren’t you curious? My new handmaiden, familiar with dark magics.” She placed a book on a desk. “I can sense it. Its stench is all around you.”

“W-what? No.” Claire laughed nervously. “I’m pretty sure you can’t ‘smell’ magic.”

“Every magic leaves a trace, girl,” Morgana said. “You did shadow magic, and quite recently, too. Now, what do you know of the shadows?”

“No idea what you’re talking about.” Claire could feel sweat trickling down her neck. It was true; she _had_ done something when they fell through that time rift. It was like something inside of her had woken up, and she wasn’t sure she liked it. The worst part? If Jim hadn’t escaped, she was certain it would’ve happened again.

She chuckled. “Don’t play coy, little lamb.” Claire grit her teeth at the nickname. “You’re hiding your knowledge from me _and_ from Arthur.” She slid her hand into a leather glove. “You stood against my brother for a troll, a magical creature like myself, like us. The others would fear our potential and would quash it. But I do not fear magic. It is true strength.”

Morgana summoned the shadow staff into her hand and extended it to its full length. Claire watched wistfully. Oh, she missed doing that. The witch raised the staff. “Aurai capernus umbra!”

The shadows in the room deepened, and an unnatural chill filled the air. Darkness spread across the painting of Arthur and Morgana. Claire shivered at Morgana’s face, which was twisted in anger. Now _that_ was the sorceress she remembered.

Then regret and sadness passed over her face, and she put down the staff. Instantly, the shadows lifted, and warmth flooded Claire’s body. “Will I ever be strong enough to save those who are different from his wrath?” she asked quietly.

Claire approached her and took the shadow staff into her hands. She ran her hands along it length. In a snap, she could summon a portal to find Jim. It would be too easy to take this for her own. Finally, she could be _powerful_ again, and she wouldn’t be so helpless in a fight.

But…she’d never seen Morgana so-so _vulnerable_. She didn’t know she had this caring, sympathetic side in her. She even tried to protect Jim from her own brother.

“You’re stronger than you know,” Claire said, surprising herself. “Maybe you could convince him, your brother, to change. To set them all free.”

“He was a good man once,” Morgana replied. “But after he lost Gwen, the scars on his face now match the scars on his heart. Why would he listen to me now?” She turned to Claire.

“Because people can surprise you sometimes,” Claire answered, giving her a reassuring smile. She held the staff out, and Morgana took it hesitantly.

“He’s too arrogant to see his war is misguided, but I must act. Arthur’s bloodshed ends today.” she declared with determination, stamping the shadow staff on the floor. Claire’s hopes rose. Maybe she could change Morgana for the better?

And that’s when Arthur stepped into the room.

* * *

“Ow,” Jim whimpered as he darted into an alley. “Owowowowow.” He warily poked his head around the corner before ducking down. He waited, muscles tense, as two soldiers trudged past the alley. Eventually, their footsteps faded into the distance. Jim sighed in relief and slumped down onto the dirt, wincing.

“Ow,” he grunted again, shifting his body in the least painful way possible. “Definitely not one of my better ideas.”

Jim was still irritated at himself for bolting like an animal. He really should’ve listened to Douxie, or even escaped through the castle. But nooooo. He just had to jump through a freaking window into direct _sunlight_. Fortunately, the pain had jump-started his brain. He had grabbed the wall of the castle, ripped out a section of it, and let it fall to the ground. That way, it would look like he was dead. Then, he had landed on the cobblestone street and sprinted to the nearest shade. The falling pile of rocks had distracted the peasants enough for Jim to leave unnoticed.

It was a good thing he was only half-troll. That much sunlight would’ve killed a normal troll, but for Jim, it just gave him really, really bad sunburn. Yeah, he was pretty sure he’d still turn to stone if exposed to it for too long, but it took much longer than it would for a normal troll.

As the pain lessened, Jim was finally able to realize how much of a mess he had gotten himself into. What was he supposed to do now? He was in medieval England, surrounded by hundreds of people who hated trolls and were more than willing to kill him. And even if he could somehow escape Camelot, what then? He had no idea who or what resided in the forest.

Well, there were trolls. That was obvious. But he had a feeling trolls were a lot less friendly back then. They didn’t have a Trollhunter to protect them, after all.

Jim blinked. Oh. Right. No Trollhunter. He probably should get rid of the armor for now, to avoid creating a time paradox or whatever happened in movies. With a flash of blue, he dismissed the armor. Jim looked down at his hands and shuddered. Wow. He hadn’t thought his burns were _that_ bad.

His hands were charred black, with only bits of their normal blue peeking through. Inspection of his arms and legs yielded the same result. Jim hesitantly touched his face and hissed in pain. That was probably black, too.

“I’m never having Mom read King Arthur to me again,” he grumbled. Jim picked at his hoodie, contemplating on his next move. He frowned. A hoodie in medieval times? Yeah, that wouldn’t fly. Guess he could start with some new clothes.

With a groan, he slowly picked himself off the ground. He peeked around the corner again, revealing no guards. That was still no help. Outside of his little alley was painful daylight. He had to stick to the shadows, but how?

Jim glanced guiltily at the back door of the house he had been resting on. He wasn’t too keen on entering and breaking _again_ , but desperate times call for desperate measures.

He slipped quietly into the hut and choked back a scream. A dead pig hanging from the ceiling stared at him with lifeless eyes. Jim whipped his head around, only to be met with another slab of meat. And another. And another. Of course the one place he had trespassed was the butcher’s.

Jim’s stomach growled hungrily. Oh, man, did those look good. Surely the guy wouldn’t notice one bite missing…

No! Jim snapped his mouth shut. This guy was probably very poor; he couldn’t hurt his business like this.

His stomach moaned unhappily as Jim pushed past the meat, trying to ignore the intoxicating smells. He soon reached the back of the shop. Taking the small door as the exit, Jim cracked the door open. When he saw no people, he pushed the door fully open and stepped out.

Huh. Looks like he had entered another alley. Except, this one was surrounded by more buildings, and they were a lot taller too. Clotheslines hung between the houses, the garments flapping in the wind.

Great. The universe really wanted him to steal, didn’t it?

Reluctantly, Jim scaled the buildings and grabbed the largest clothes he could find. After a moment of debate, he decided to grab a long, heavy cloak. It wouldn’t provide too much protection from the sun, but it was better than nothing.

He dropped to the dirt and started to undress, feeling horribly self-conscious. _Please, please don’t let anyone come in here_ , he prayed as he slipped off his sweatpants.

Finally, medieval Jimbo was born. He inspected himself, fighting the urge to swish his cloak around like a little kid. Not bad. Jim looked around at the deserted alley and shrugged. Aw, what the heck. No one was around to watch him anyways, so he might as well have a bit of fun.

After one more glance confirmed there were no eyes watching, he put the hood over his head. He began swishing his cloak, feeling like a mysterious wizard. He grinned in glee and struck a pose.

A sharp voice cut through the air. “Did you hear what His Majesty is planning?”

Jim yipped in surprise and jumped ten feet in the air. _OHMYGODOHMYGOD RUN YOU GOTTA RUN_ his instincts screamed. _No!_ Jim thought stubbornly after landing. He wasn’t about to run off again; they hadn’t seen him, after all. They were just outside the alley’s entrance, so he needed to calm down and-

“Yes,” another voice snorted. “It’s about time he disposed of the trolls in the dungeon. Ever done guard duty down there? No? You’re fortunate. This one lady troll is quite the heckler.”

“You don’t say. You know when they’re going to be exterminated?”

“Tomorrow, at dawn. Bloody good way to start the day, in my opinion!”

Jim’s eyes widened in shock. There were-there were trolls, here in Camelot? And in a dungeon, no less. Worst of all, that stupid king was going to kill them all tomorrow. He glared at the castle’s towers. He did know what he was going to do after all.

It was time for the Trollhunter to answer a call.

* * *

Douxie, Claire, and Steve sneaked through the castle, dodging knights and servants alike. Douxie still wasn’t too fond of potentially destroying their future, but he couldn’t sit back and let those trolls die. If Merlin chewed his head off when he got back, well, he’d just have to deal with it.

“All clear up there, Arch?” Douxie stage-whispered.

“Yes,” his familiar answered. “It’s just Lancelot and Galahad right now, and they’re drunk as fools. Sprint past them, and you should be fine.”

Douxie poked his head in front of the pillar before darting into the open. The knights were laughing their heads off, oblivious to the teenagers. Claire and Archie followed suit.

After a while, Douxie slowed to a halt. “It’s quiet,” he murmured. “Too quiet.” He turned around. “Guys, where’s Steve?”

Claire looked just as confused as he felt. “I thought he was right behind us.”

“Ah, yes, about that,” Archie cleared his throat. “The blonde-haired oaf is horsing around with the knights. Oh, pardon me, I mean he’s ‘distracting the knights.’”

Douxie slapped himself. “Perfect. One more thing that’s gone wrong today.”

“Sorry about that,” a voice remarked from behind him.

“Blimey balroths!” Douxie shrieked, whipping his head around.

The voice burst into laughter. “My bad, Douxie.” The owner of the voice stepped into the dim torchlight, and Douxie gasped. It was the Trollhunter. “Didn’t mean to scare you. Actually, I kinda did, so…”

“Jim!” Claire gasped, and ran into his arms. “You’re here! You’re really here!” The two kissed, and instantly Douxie knew he was third-wheeling. He scratched his neck awkwardly.

Finally, they broke apart. “I’m so glad you’re safe,” Claire gushed. She stepped back and gazed at Jim in surprise. “Uh, when did you get new clothes?”

“Oh, this?” Jim was dressed in a white cloth tunic with brown pants. A leather belt cinched his waist, and strips of torn cloth were wrapped around his forearms. A long, dark brown cloak swept around his body, although the hood wasn’t up. He was still wearing no shoes. “I may have stolen this off a clothesline. And by maybe, I definitely did. Yeah…” He cleared his throat. “I like your dress, by the way.”

“Thanks,” Claire beamed. “It’s the only good thing I got from being a handmaiden to Morgana.”

“Wait, what?!”

“I know we have _a lot_ to catch up on,” Douxie interrupted, “but maybe we could do so on the way to the dungeon? I don’t know how long he can keep them distracted.”

The group traveled further into the depths of the castle, avidly talking about what the other has been up to. Eventually, Archie started talking to Claire about Douxie’s many mishaps, leaving Douxie and Jim in awkward silence. Douxie coughed.

“So, uh,” Jim began, causing Douxie to look up, “I just wanted to let you know that I’m sorry for what happened earlier. I really didn’t mean to worry you guys like that.”

“No, it’s my fault,” he sighed. “I would’ve ran too if I had been in your position. I understand why you didn’t trust me-”

“What?” Jim stared at him incredulously. “You really think that?”

Douxie gaped at him. “Don’t you?”

The Trollhunter laughed in utter disbelief. “Douxie, let me tell you a thing about troll physiology. We’re sort of like animals in the sense that we have a ‘fight-or-flight’ response. When I get really panicky, I don’t think straight. Either I fight my way out of the problem, or I run away from it. In this case, I ran. It’s hard to talk me out of it.” Jim clapped his hand on Douxie’s shoulder. “Trust me when I say that I _do_ believe you can protect us, Douxie. I was just being a dumb troll and let my instincts take over.”

Hope sparked in Douxie’s chest. “You really mean that?”

“Well, yeah.”

Douxie gave him a winning smile and put his own hand on Jim’s shoulder. “Thanks, mate. I needed that. And, by the way? You’re not dumb.” The boys fist-bumped each other.

Several flights of stairs later, and they were at the dungeon. Cells and cages surrounded them with all kinds of trolls. A large cell contained a troll with a leafy crown, and another held several goblins. Tiny cages with angry, chittering gnomes hung from the ceiling. There had to at least be a dozen, maybe more.

“Okay,” Jim said. “You and Claire take the ones in the back, and I’ll get the ones in the front. I can hear if any knights come down.” They nodded, and went to the back of the dungeon.

“Never thought I’d see a troll working with fleshbags,” a voice commented. “You hit your head or something, skinny?”

Jim faced the source of the voice. It belonged to a thick, green-skinned troll. She had short, pale blonde hair and vivid purple eyes that studied him amusingly. She wore a blue crop top and a ragged skirt. Her pierced horn only added to her unique look.

“I’m actually half-fleshbag, so…” Jim ripped the lock apart like it was tearing paper. “You get to learn they’re not so bad. And I’m not that skinny,” he mumbled under his breath.

“Right,” the troll snorted, stepping out of the cell. “And I’m half-goblin. Waka chaka-hey!” she growled, wiping some brown substance off her face, “that better be mud.”

The now-liberated goblins cackled knowingly.

“I’m Callista, by the way,” the troll said as Jim freed a pair of trolls from another cell. “Jim,” he offered. “What are you here for, anyways?”

“Blame Arthur,” Callista huffed. “Steals my homelands, then says I’m trespassing there. Now trolls are forbidden, along with anything else that’s not a fleshbag.”

“He’s at war with more than just the Gumm-Gumms?” Jim said, aghast, turning back to her. “Ask Arthur, the only good troll’s a dead one. Same goes for goblins, gnomes, and any other so-called “monster” he doesn’t understand.” Her eyes seemed to light with a fire Jim had only seen in warrior trolls.

“Callista, I-”

“That’s the lot of them,” Douxie announced proudly, stepping up to Jim and Callista. “Shall we be off, then?”

The party started up the stairs as quietly as they could. All seemed to be going well until Steve’s voice rapped ( _Rapped?_ Jim thought) from above: “My lord Arthur’s in the building. Watch out y’all, he’s here to do some creep-killing! Get out of here!”

“Now, now,” Douxie warned, “everyone just stay calm.”

Everyone did not stay calm.

* * *

Ulric looked around quizzically. Maybe it was the brew he had drank earlier, but he had thought he had felt the ground shake. He shrugged. It was probably just his stomach. It always happened after he had one of Anne’s mysterious meat pies.

Then the ground shook again, more violently this time, and he knew it wasn’t his stomach.

“Oy, Geoffrey,” he called. “You feel that?”

“I don’t feel anything-”

A thirty-foot troll burst through the portcullis. It shook its leafy head before taking a young squire off its chest and gently placing it on the ground. It patted its head before running off.

Ulric fainted.

Meanwhile, Jim, Claire, Douxie, Callista, and Archie had been separated from the other trolls and were running down an empty street.

“Is this part of your plan?” Archie teased.

“I’m improvising!” Douxie stammered.

“Quick, through the alleys!” Callista said. “They can’t catch all of us.” With that, she darted away from them.

Douxie ushered Jim and Claire behind a wall just as Arthur approached him, several knights in tow. “Did you see where they went?” he demanded.

An idea forming in his head, Douxie replied, “Yes! Quick, in here. Don’t worry, sire, I’ll freeze them on the spot.” He activated his bracelet.

“Then do it! This way, men!”

Just as Arthur and the knights charged, Douxie shot a bolt of magic. Two blue portals formed about ten feet apart. Whenever they ran through one portal, they just came out the other, trapping them in an-

“What trickery is this now?” Arthur complained.

“Fuzzbuckets!” Douxie felt like slapping himself again. “I must have cast an Infinite Hallway by accident. You know how frustrating magic is. Uh, let me-let me just find the right spell.” He started frantically flipping through his runes.

“Wizard, remove this enchantment or I’ll remove your head!”

Jim and Claire kept running through the town. Smelling a human up ahead, Jim quickly pulled Claire back from running into the open.

But it wasn’t enough. Galahad had sensed them, and approached them. Jim braced himself for a fight. He really didn’t feel like hurting more people today, but if he had to, he would. Just before Galahad turned the corner, fire streamed from above. A shadow in the form of a dragon roared.

“Hagar’s ghost!” Galahad shouted, and promptly ran away. Jim and Claire turned to their savior, who was-Morgana?

“I couldn’t stand by either,” she said, lowering the shadow staff. “Go!”

And so they ran. Finally, they reached the final gate of Camelot. Just beyond it lay freedom. Most of the trolls had already passed through it, but Callista was still there, helping other trolls through. “Come on, skinny legs,” she said upon seeing Jim. “I know a safe place in the woods.”

“You get them home, Trollhunter,” Claire urged, pushing Jim away. “I’ll keep the knights busy and find you later.”

Jim protested, “But-”

“Ugh, we don’t have time for this!” Callista took Jim’s hand and pulled him away. “Come on!”

“I promise,” Claire smiled sadly. Jim whined softly.

Callista and Jim trotted onto the bridge. All the trolls were past the portcullis now, but a greater danger lay ahead. The sun was rising, covering the bridge in its deadly rays. There was no way they could pass.

“The sun!” Jim cried. “Watch out!” The trolls instantly retreated, panic written all over their faces.

“Men, after them!” Arthur yelled, gripping Excalibur tightly.

Suddenly, the portcullis glowed blue and slammed down onto the stone. No matter how hard the knights tried to pull it up, it wouldn’t budge. At least that was something.

Unfortunately, they were still trapped. The sun kept spreading its horrible beams, forcing the trolls to retreat more and more. Soon, they would be out of room. If that wasn’t bad enough, the knights had poked their spears through the gaps in the gate, forming a deadly barrier. Jim didn’t think a magical sword could get them out of this mess.

Jim felt something in his pocket pulse. _Weird_ , he thought _That wasn’t the amulet_.

Curious, he patted the pant’s pocket and pulled out the onyx shard. “What?” he said under his breath. That-that wasn’t possible. Anything he put in his armor’s pocket stayed in his armor’s pocket. It didn’t transfer to his normal clothes.

The shard pulsed again, and Jim had the sudden urge to-to stab himself with it? That was crazy. He wouldn’t do that, even though the shard held _so_ much power. Power that would help him take down all those weak, puny fleshbags without a second thought. The trolls would be free from their deadly grasp.

Unbeknown to Jim, his hand slowly lifted itself to his chest. It poised itself right where the amulet would lie, the shard trembling in anticipation. His hand thrust forward-

“Kid!” Callista cried, catching his wrist. Jim stared at her blankly. “What are you doing? I know things seem desperate, but I don’t think killing yourself would help anyone.”

Jim blinked, the world spinning back into focus. What was he doing? He shook his head to clear the fog and shoved the shard back into his pocket. “Sorry,” he mumbled. “I-I don’t know what came over me.”

Suddenly, cold seeped into the air. Jim watched in amazement, all thoughts of the shard gone, as the shadows lengthened and spread across the bridge, creating a safe path for the trolls. He wasn’t about to question it, though.

“Let’s go!” he cried, and started across the bridge. The trolls cheered and followed suit.

Jim and Callista led the charge, running as fast as their legs would allow. Jim couldn’t run as fast as usual because of his burned legs, but that was probably for the best. He wanted to make sure every single troll got into the forest to safety. He didn’t know how long this mysterious shadow path would last, and he didn’t want to push their luck.

He risked a glance back, and his heart leaped in his throat. The shadow path was shortening. Even worse, the portcullis had risen, and Arthur and the knights were stampeding after them on huge, armored horses. “Go, go, go!” Jim yelled, forcing down his panic.

His warning gave the trolls another burst of speed. The tree line was rapidly approaching, their welcoming shade beckoning to them. Hope surged through Jim. They were gonna make it!

Unfortunately, Arthur saw it too. “Don’t let them get to the trees!” he shouted.

Jim looked back again, which was a mistake. He tripped over a rock and fell, his body slamming hard into the ground. He groaned, his sunburns throbbing in pain. He raised his gaze, only to see a knight towering over him. The knight lifted his sword high, and Jim vainly raised his hand for protection.

Out of the blue, a large, stony fist punched the knight off his horse. Jim slumped in relief. “Thank you-” his mouth dropped open. He slowly looked up, coming face-to-face with none other than Gunmar the Black.

Gunmar pinned the knight down and roared in anger at the approaching humans. His etched tattoos burned blue, and his one eye flickered fiercely. “Who wanders into my woods?” he snarled.

Arthur pulled his horse to a stop and commanded, “Hold, men! Hold!”

_Oh my God_ , Jim thought wildly. _Oh my God it’s Gunmar. He’s here. And he’s not trying to kill me? What’s next, Bular and HOLY SH-_

Bular the Butcher trudged from behind Jim and stood next to his father. His yellow-and-orange eyes gleamed with anticipation. Two large swords laid sheathed on his back.

Strange, undignified high-pitched noises came from Jim’s mouth, and he quickly slapped a hand over it.

To his horror, Bular turned his way. “Young one,” he said surprisingly gently. “Are you hurt?”

“N-not too bad,” Jim stammered, trying not to focus on Gunmar threatening Arthur. “J-just a little sunburnt.” He let out a wheezy laugh.

Bular’s nostrils flared. “Measly fleshbags. They will pay for what they’ve done to you, and the rest of our kind. Now, go,” he flicked his head to Callista, who had returned and was helping Jim to his feet. “Be safe.”

Jim let Callista lead him deeper into the woods. His whole body felt numb, and Callista’s comments a distant buzz. Only one thought ran through his mind:

_Did I just get protected by **three** of my archenemies in one day?!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know why I added Jim swishing his cloak, but I thought it would be adorable, so there it is. I was also hoping that Jim would have a heart attack when he saw Gunmar in the show, but he didn't, so oh well. 
> 
> Little note on the perspective in this fic: it's mostly gonna be Jim and Douxie. It'll be Claire here and there, but it's mostly gonna be the boys. As for content, I'm not going to rewrite scenes where shardless Jim doesn't change the story (like when Douxie knocked out his younger self.) I'm only going to rewrite scenes with shardless Jim or his actions change the story, in order to preserve my sanity.


	3. Witch Hunt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Jim gets a magic splinter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, this chapter turned out WAY longer than I thought it would be. I kept thinking, "that would be fun" and "oh yeah, that too!" and so another 1000 something words were added lol. 
> 
> Also, I hadn't realized it's been almost a MONTH since I've updated this fic, and that is a crime. Please accept my apology, and enjoy. 
> 
> Some quotes are taken directly from the show and are not mine, they belong to Dreamworks. You know the drill.

“I am such an _idiot_ sometimes,” Douxie groaned, running a hand down his face. “Why didn’t I hide myself better? Now Merlin is going to watch us like a hawk, and my man-bun self is running around like a fool,” he scowled.

“Come now, things aren’t as bad as they seem,” Archie consoled, padding down the stone corridor with Douxie. “Yes, your master is infuriated with you, we’ve changed history for the worse, and the knights are going on a hunt after the trolls…” his familiar paused. “Actually, it is rather bad, isn’t it?”

“Thank you, Arch,” Douxie grumbled, coming to a stop just before the stables. The knights were getting prepared for the hunt, saddling the horses and sharpening their weaponry. He slumped. How was he ever going to fix this?

“Douxie!” Claire cried, disrupting him from his thoughts. “Morgana and I were just called to the throne room, and Arthur is _furious_. He wanted to know how the ‘beast,’” her lip curled, “survived the sun when it fell from the castle. He’s already angry that the trolls escaped from the dungeon, but the fact that Jim was seen there, alive and helping them…” she shuddered. “Douxie, you should’ve seen him. Even worse, he knew there was shadow magic involved, and he blames Morgana! Now she’s going to have to come on this stupid hunt too!”

Claire grabbed his wrist. “If they catch Jim, he’ll have no choice but to fight back! And I don’t think he knows how easily he can hurt someone with his strength. If he kills any of them, he won’t be able to live with himself.” She stared at him pleadingly. “Or if he doesn’t fight back, he’ll be killed!”

“I know, and he’s not the only one.” Douxie’s gaze dropped. “Because of us, Arthur’s going to eat the big one too.”

“Eat the what?” Steve asked, walking through the swinging gate. “Oh no, was I supposed to bring food?”

“He’ll be eating a death sandwich, Steve,” he explained impatiently.

“Who would eat that? Gross.”

Douxie rolled his eyes. “Look.” He took out the time map and opened it. Arthur’s corpse revolved slowly in the blue holographic circle. “If Arthur dies, we lose the Battle of Killahead _and_ the war.”

“Which will probably mess up time so much, you’ll never be able to go home,” Archie added from an alcove above.

Douxie skimmed through the timeline, causing it to flash between an angry red and cool blue. Toby popped up, fully dressed in his orange battle armor. They watched in dismay as his body faded away.

“Toby!” Claire moaned. “What’s happening to him?”

His eyes widened in realization and horror. “The future- _our_ future is vanishing!” Douxie continued to skip through the timeline, hoping to find _some_ kind of positive outcome-

“What’s that?” Claire asked, pausing Douxie’s searching.

It was Morgana and Arthur, linking arms and waving. Wide grins split their faces, any tension between them gone.

Douxie blinked. “Well, that-that certainly wasn’t there before.” He gasped and skimmed forward more. An image of Jim and Arthur shaking hands appeared. “It’s a new timeline, one where Arthur and Jim live.”

“And Morgana’s the hero?” Claire said as a triumphant Morgana waved at an unseen crowd. “I thought she was destined to become Mistress Doom.”

“It looks like there’s a possibility, if we get Arthur and Morgana to reconcile, then somehow, nobody dies!” he cheered. “So all we need to do is-” Suddenly, the timeline started spinning faster and faster, switching from blue to red and back again. It trembled violently in Douxie’s hands.

“Uh, I think your magic toy is broken!” Steve squealed, watching the map anxiously.

“N-no, it’s not broken,” Douxie stammered. “I don’t know what’s going on-” The timeline stilled, the colors a mix of red and blue. Then an image of a huge troll glowered at him, causing him to shriek and drop the map. “What-what is that?” he yelped.

Steve had jumped into Claire’s arms. He laughed nervously before she rolled her eyes and proceeded to drop him.

She stooped down to the time map and picked it up. “Do you have any idea who this is, Douxie?” she wondered as she straightened.

Douxie took a deep breath to calm his nerves and studied the dark blue troll. It was massive; he’d even say it was almost as bulky as Gunmar himself. Two pairs of wickedly sharp horns curved from its head, and crystal protrusions poked from its back and forearms. Strange, blood-red lines glowed all across its body, with bits of armor protecting one shoulder and its wrists. Its flaring red eyes only added to its haunting look.

But, despite its unique and frightening appearance, he couldn’t for the life of him remember seeing it anywhere. Yes, he hadn’t exactly delved into troll lore as much as he should’ve, but he definitely would’ve heard about something like _this_.

“I-I don’t,” he admitted, taking the map from Claire. He placed a hand on the circle, caught in its weird swirl of red and blue. “But you see how the map is sort of half red and half blue?” When the others nodded, he continued, “The map…it’s never done this before. This is just a theory, mind you, but I think this means that whatever timeline ends up happening-good or bad-this troll will still appear. He’s inevitable.”

Silence befell the group.

“What’s, um, inevitable?” Steve piped up.

“Mordrax’s miracles, Steve, I-”

“Squire Steve!” Galahad called. “We are all thirsty!”

“Okay, we’ll worry about that weird troll guy later,” Claire said, rubbing her temples. “I’ll keep an eye on Morgana. Douxie, you work on Arthur. And Steve, make sure they don’t kill my boyfriend.” Steve saluted.

As Douxie jogged to an unoccupied horse, he couldn’t shake the feeling that, yes, the troll _had_ seemed familiar. But he was confident he hadn’t seen it in some musty book. No…for some reason, this troll reminded him of-of _Jim_.

He snorted as he clambered onto the horse. He was being ridiculous. There was no way Jim could ever become that, right? It just wasn’t possible.

Right?

* * *

The trolls jogged at a steady pace through the forest, jumping over logs and dodging sunbeams. Callista led the group while Jim stayed at the back. He could’ve easily outrun them all, sure, but he wasn’t about to let anyone fall behind. Not to mention, he had absolutely no clue where he was. If he got separated from them, he was done for.

They slowed to a stop. Curious, Jim trotted to the front of the group. “Yes!” Callista exclaimed, hands on her hips. “We made it to the border.”

Jim followed her gaze and gasped. “Whoa.”

He couldn’t believe it. It was the bridge. _The_ bridge. Where he had fought so, so many battles. It was so weird and off-putting to see it as a normal bridge now. Just another part of the landscape, with moss crawling over the ancient stone.

“That’s Killahead,” he said breathlessly as they walked across it.

“Yeah, yeah. Big, scary name for a puny little bridge,” Callista snorted.

“Oh, trust me, it’s going to earn that name eventually,” Jim murmured as he traced his hand across the stone. He chuckled to himself, reminiscing about the time he fought Strickler here. Simpler times.

“Sure,” Callista said slowly, giving him a weird look. “Anyway, the river’s been dry for years. At this point, it’s a bridge over nothing.” She started trudging away, leaving Jim at the back again.

“W-wait! My friends were supposed to find us by now,” he pleaded, remembering Claire’s promise. “Something must’ve happened. You guys get to safety; I’ll wait for them.”

Callista sighed and turned back to face him. “Look, I appreciate the offer, but I don’t think you can take on a whole order of knights. Can’t have you die on me and haunt me in my night dreams, right?” She gave him a crooked smile.

He couldn’t help but grin back. “Thanks for the concern, Callista, but you should trust me on this one. I’m stronger than I look.”

“With your skinny legs?” she laughed. “I doubt it. Now, come on,” she said, placing a hand on his back and pushing him along. “I don’t get why you trust those humans anyway.”

“We’re really not that bad,” he insisted, letting her drag him along. “You just gotta give us a chance-” A trumpet blared, far too close for Jim’s liking, and he smacked his forehead. _Great timing_ , he thought sourly.

“Ugh, a chance to what?” Callista demanded as shouts and whinnies filled the air. “Those humans are coming to turn your head into a wall decoration.”

Jim grimaced at the idea. “Okay, maybe _those_ humans are, but we really-okay, that’s not important right now. Everybody, hide!” he shouted, turning to the trolls paralyzed with fear. They grunted in alarm and quickly hid behind whatever shelter they could find. Jim followed Callista to a broad tree and waited with bated breath.

The horses slowed to a stop, and one of the knights disembarked. Hesitantly, he peeked his head around the trunk and gasped. Steve’s angel-man was creeping towards a boulder that a gnome was cowering behind. If the gnome was absolutely silent, then they should be fine-

Then the gnome farted, and Jim bonked his head against the tree. There goes that.

“We can’t let them find the others,” he told Callista.

“They’ll lead them straight to our village,” she nodded. “No-good fleshbags.”

“We gotta distract them.”

“Hm, you’re right,” she grinned mischievously and shoved him into the open. Jim stumbled over his new cloak and looked up at the surprised knights sheepishly. “Uh, h-hello!” he spluttered, offering a tiny wave.

Arthur’s attention swiveled to him, and he shrunk back. Oh, _wow_. He looked more murderous than before, if that was possible. “Get them!” he roared, spurring his horse forward.

Jim turned on his heels and sprinted in the opposite direction, the other trolls following suit. Callista ran beside Jim, her sides shaking with laughter.

“I can’t believe you pushed me!” he cried, playfully shoving her back.

Or, well, it was supposed to be a playful push. Jim had underestimated his troll strength and accidentally sent Callista flying into another troll. They knocked into each other and tumbled to the ground, tripping yet another troll and squashing a goblin as they went.

They groaned, trying to untangle themselves, but they wouldn’t be up and running in time. Arthur and the knights would catch up, kill them, and it would all be his fault.

_No_. Jim shook his head. He wasn’t going to let that happen. There had to be some way to buy time without fighting them, something he could do-

His eyes flicked to the rapidly approaching knights, then to a large tree off to his right. Hmmm…

* * *

Douxie clenched his reigns tightly as his horse galloped closer and closer to the trolls. At this rate, they weren’t going to escape. The horses were too fast, and the trolls too slow. The worst part? He couldn’t even do anything to help, lest Arthur sever his head from his body.

Suddenly, the trolls stumbled and fell. Douxie’s heart jumped to his throat. _No, no, no!_ he screamed mentally. This is it. They were done for.

He furrowed his brow in concentration and flexed his wrist, his bracelet whirring to life. No. He didn’t care what Merlin or Arthur would do to him. He was going to save these trolls, whether they liked it or not-

A shadow passed overhead, and Douxie craned his neck to look at the source. His eyes widened.

“T-t-TREE!” he yelped, and veered his horse away from the falling tree. The others looked up as well before shouting in alarm and directing their horses away. With a mighty boom, the tree crashed onto the ground, sending up a spray of dirt. The horses nickered and reared in protest.

Douxie coughed, vainly trying to wave away the dust. Knights groaned, many having fallen off their horses or crushed under the tree. Douxie’s eyes fell on Merlin, who had also been knocked from his horse. To his horror, he wasn’t moving.

“Master!” he cried, sliding down from his horse and rushing to his side. “Master, please, are you alright? Can you hear me? I-”

“Cease your worrying, Hisirdoux,” Merlin grunted, cracking an eye open. “I am perfectly fine. Just a bit bruised and sore, is all. Now,” he said, sitting up with great difficulty, “where is my staff? I need it to move this blasted tree out of our way.”

Douxie looked up and couldn’t stop himself from grinning. The tree had successfully blocked the path. It was much too tall to jump or climb over, and it was so long that it stretched into the thickly forested part of the woods. It was practically impossible to navigate a horse through there.

A glint of green glimmered from the corner of his eyes, and Douxie’s gaze flicked to it. Merlin’s staff lay on the ground, just beyond the edge of the path. Thinking fast, he tapped a rune on his bracelet and thrust his hand forward. Blue magic surrounded the staff, and it flew far into the depths of the woods.

“Not too shabby,” Archie murmured from his shoulder. Douxie smiled proudly.

“Merlin!” Arthur boomed, stomping his way over to them. “Why isn’t this tree out of my sight yet?”

“Apologies, my king,” Merlin said, wincing as he stood up, “I shall be right on it. As soon as I have my staff, it’ll be a problem no more.”

“And, pray tell, where is this staff of yours?”

Merlin looked to his right, and then to his left. He opened and closed his mouth, at an utter loss for words. “I-I don’t know,” he said, gaze roving over the treetops. “It must’ve been-displaced when I fell off my steed.”

“Perfect,” Arthur huffed. “Morgana!” he bellowed, turning to the sorceress. “Care to make good use of your shadow magic for once and remove this obstacle?”

“Oh, I surely would, sire,” Morgana practically purred. “But I cannot summon a portal large enough to get rid of the tree. It is beyond my power.”

“Of course, as soon as we actually _need_ magic, it is useless,” Arthur growled. “The trolls have probably taken refuge in the Wild Wood at this point. No matter. Any men who are in good shape, help me lift the tree so we can retrieve the wounded. As for you, Morgana,” he spat, “you can search the woods for the wizard’s staff with your new handmaiden.” With that, the king stalked off.

As Merlin walked away, muttering under his breath, Douxie rushed over to Claire. “Now’s our chance,” he said. “I’ll take Arthur.”

“I’ll cover Morgana,” she nodded.

“And let’s just focus on getting these royal siblings to hug and make up,” Archie added.

“And not die.”

“Ah, yes. That too.”

“Wish me luck,” Douxie remarked as he jogged over to Arthur, who was helping a knight to his feet. He cleared his throat.

“Enjoying the hunt, milord?”

* * *

“Callista, I’m _so_ sorry, I-”

“Jim, I swear,” Callista growled, “if I hear you apologize one more time, I’m going to break your jaw so you can’t talk anymore.”

“But it’s my fault we were almost captured!” Jim protested as he jumped over a boulder.

“That’s true,” she admitted, continuing to run through the stony canyon. “But I did push you in front of Arthur, so I guess we’re even. Besides,” she said, turning to look back at him, “you were right. You _are_ stronger than you look. Not many trolls can toss a huge tree like that. Consider me mildly impressed.”

“Gee, thanks,” Jim said, cracking a grin. His smile faltered as Callista held up a hand. He peeked over her shoulder. Noting seemed out of the ordinary, besides some trollish carvings in the rocky walls. He stepped forward. “What are those?”

An arrow whizzed out of a carving’s mouth. Before it could stab him in the face, Callista pulled him out of the way. The arrow thunked into the opposite wall. He swallowed hard. “Th-thanks.”

“Don’t mention it,” she commented. “You know trolls. We like to protect our homes.” She strode forward, carefully stepping on certain stones, and Jim followed her example. “Those fleshbags would have to be stupid to follow us now.”

“You don’t know Steve.”

As they climbed over a sloping cliff, they could hear the sound of several knights shouting in the distance. Jim groaned inwardly. He really couldn’t catch a break, could he?

“Lousy smoothskins just keep coming,” Callista huffed.

“So, how’d you know about the traps?” Jim asked, eager to change the topic. Anything to get her mind off humans.

Callista’s pace slowed. “‘Cause…I used to live here,” she responded quietly. Jim’s eyes widened at his surroundings. They were in a small, demolished village. Plants were starting to wrap their leafy fingers around the desolate ruins. Several trolls, turned to stone, were scattered throughout the place. Terror was permanently etched onto their faces.

“This is Tombro, my home,” Callista explained. “Or what’s left of it.”

Jim followed her, wincing at a troll who looked particularly terrified. “It’s uh…nice!” he offered, trying the lighten the mood.

“It was,” Callista agreed. “You know, ‘great’ King Arthur, always expanding his borders. I was just a youngling when the knights sacked the village, caught me, gave me my human name: Callista.” She stooped down and rummaged around the dirt, before standing back up again. In her hand was a small, troll statue. “Never knew my troll name. My real one. You know. Usual story.” Bitterness and sorrow filled her voice.

“Callista, I-I’m so sorry,” Jim said. He wish he could’ve said something more meaningful, but it was the best he could offer. “Hey, my name is pretty unusual too. Jim…it’s no troll name. It’s human.” He felt a sudden pang of sadness for the loss of his human life, and he swallowed the unexpected lump in his throat. “I get it.”

Callista gave him a grateful smile before clearing her throat. “Come on. There’ll be time to lick our wounds when those pinkbellies aren’t hunting us.”

“You know were I’m from, humans and trolls get along,” Jim said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Ha! And where’s that again?”

“Prepare to have your mind blown,” he grinned, taking his phone from his pocket. “Look!” he said eagerly, flipping through pictures of him and his friends’ interactions with trolls. Claire helping Bagdwella, Toby dancing with the Quagawumps. “People and trolls working together. We don’t have to fight!”

He settled on a picture of him, Toby, and Claire with Aargh and the other trolls. Hot tears prickled his eyes, and he furiously blinked them back. He was _not_ about to cry in front of this troll he just met a few hours ago. But still…this photo reminded him of better times. When his biggest worry was kidnapping rogue gnomes and studying for his Spanish tests. Now look where he was now.

“Oh, who’s the one with the baby hands?” Callista crooned, pointing at Jim pre-transformation. “Must be the runt of the litter.”

“He was tall for his age!” he protested, sadness momentarily forgotten. “But you see? They’re not all bad.”

“This one is sort of sweet,” she murmured, tapping Toby’s face. “Looks like I could squish him.”

“Hahaha, please don’t do that.”

Suddenly, an arrow sliced through the air and into Callista’s upper thigh. “AUGH!” she screamed, falling to the ground.

“Callista!” Jim shouted, crouching down next to her. “Are you-”

“I’m fine,” she grunted, hissing in pain as she yanked out the arrow. “This won’t kill me.”

Jim helped her to her feet and gently shoved her away. “You need to get out of here. _Now_.”

“Not without you-”

“RUN!” he roared, showing his teeth. Callista stared at him for a long moment before giving a sharp nod. “Come find me!” she called over her shoulder as she limped away.

Another arrow swished towards Jim, but he caught it with barely a second glance. He glared up at the blonde-haired knight that had fired it, a threatening growl rising in his throat. He easily snapped the arrow in two, the pieces falling to the ground. With a snarl, he leapt to where the blonde knight hid. The knight fired several more arrows, but Jim smacked them away like flies.

A squeal sounded from his right, and Jim glanced to the source of the noise, which turned out to be Steve.

“H-hi, creeper Jim,” he trembled.

He sighed. “Hey, Steve. Why am I not surprised you’re in this mess?”

The sound of a sword being unsheathed filled the air, and Jim narrowly dodged the blade that swiped at his head. “Don’t ignore your opponent, troll!” the knight declared. “For you are facing the most fierce knight in the land, Sir Lancelot!”

“Whatever you say,” Jim remarked as he swept Lancelot’s legs from under him. As the knight fell, he scooped the sword from his grasp. He leaned it on it casually, smirking as the knight groaned from the ground. “I’ve faced worse.”

“Quite cocky for a cornered beast,” a voice thundered. Jim tensed and slowly turned to face Arthur, Excalibur gleaming in his hands. A hungry glint shone in his cold blue eyes.

More footsteps pounded through the small clearing, and Jim swallowed hard. At least half a dozen knights, along with Galahad, surrounded him. They brandished their spears and swords at him menacingly.

“You’re not going to get away this time, troll,” Arthur rumbled. “I’m going to do the job right and kill you myself.”

“Yeah, no,” Jim retorted. He looked back to Steve, an idea forming in his head. “Sorry about this, Steve.”

“Sorry for wha-OH MY GOD!” he screamed as Jim picked him up and chucked him at the other knights. Steve smashed into them, causing them to fall on top of Lancelot, who let out an _oof_.

While the knights were distracted, Jim turned on his heels and sprinted away. “Shoot him!” Arthur bellowed.

Arrows started flying by him, whistling through the air. Jim winced as one ripped through his cloak, grazing his arm. Okay, since he had no desire to be a shish kabob today, he needed another route of escape. His gaze flicked to the trees around him, and he grinned as he remembered his first night as a troll.

Jim vaulted himself into the trees, laughing at the infuriated knights’ shouts below. He leapt from branch to branch, easily dodging the arrows zipping by. As one arrow flitted by his face, he grabbed it and hurtled it back at Arthur. It harmlessly glanced off his armor, but it annoyed the king immensely, and he scowled at Jim. He couldn’t help but stick his tongue out at him, reveling in his escape.

…Which turned out to be a mistake. Not paying attention to where he was going, Jim jumped from a limb, eyes widening when he realized he had nothing to land on. Only a deserted clearing greeted him below.

“Oh, shoot,” he groaned.

He grunted as he tumbled down a rocky embankment, his horns slamming painfully onto the surrounding rocks. Finally, he fell onto the forest floor, face-first. The shard in his pocket punctured his leg, and he roared in pain.

He shivered as a strange, hot substance curled from the wound and traveled up his torso. It wrapped around his heart, and he gasped. Rage so fiery and intense filled him, turning his vision a hazy red. Then the pain disappeared, and a magnificent surge of power replaced it instead. He blinked, eyes flashing a brilliant red. He grinned ferociously. This felt even better than when he had first discovered the true extent of his troll strength when sparring with Aargh.

Suddenly, just as quickly as it came, the anger and power disappeared, and Jim was left wondering if he had imagined the whole thing.

“There you are,” a voice said, and Jim turned to face it, snarling. Surprise and fear overcame him, and he gaped at the woman before him.

“Morgana?” he said hoarsely, heart pumping wildly in his chest.

She approached him, her face unreadable. Jim backed away, baring his teeth at her, only for his glare to slide off his face when she held her hand out to him. “Don’t be afraid,” she said softly. “I won’t hurt you.” Hesitantly, he took her hand, and she helped him to his feet. “I’m sorry you were ever in a cage.”

Then, miraculously, Claire was in his arms. He squeezed her tightly as she burrowed her face into his chest. He didn’t know how she got out here, but he didn’t care. He was just glad she was here with him, even if it was not under ideal circumstances.

“A human and a troll,” Morgana murmured, studying them. “I never dreamed such a thing could happen…” At the top of the ridge, someone yelled, “Down in the clearing!” The clanking of armor soon followed.

Morgana’s face hardened. “Go. I will draw away the others. Go!”

It pained Jim to leave Claire so soon, but Morgana was right. (Didn’t think he’d ever hear himself thinking _that_.) “I’ll find you,” he whispered, giving Claire a quick peck.

Jim trotted away, trying to ignore the shouts of the knights growing closer and closer. Finally, he couldn’t help himself. He glanced back to see if Claire was alright-

A massive hand collided with Jim’s face. He flew into the air before skidding onto the ground, the shard burrowing deeper into his leg. The shard pulsed, and another surge of the hot substance flowed through his body. It traveled deep into his body-no, his _soul-_ and planted itself inside. He panted as something savage and monstrous awakened inside him, red flickering across his vision.

He reached for the sword that had fallen from his grasp and whirled to face the king, snarling. “You asked for it, old man. You want me to be a beast? _Fine, I’ll be a beast_!” he roared, bringing the blade down on Arthur’s head.

The king blocked the blow, and with a grunt, pushed Jim back. He bared his teeth before sliding forward and jabbing at Arthur’s sword arm. He parried him yet again and thrust Excalibur at Jim’s side. He leapt back, slapping the blade away, before slashing at Arthur’s thigh. Excalibur clanged against Lancelot’s sword, the sound ringing through the forest.

The fight continued to rage on, neither one able to get the upper hand on the other. Finally, Jim jumped back and rested his sword on his shoulder.

“Not bad, fleshbag,” he sneered. “But I’m done playing with you.”

Arthur’s face slackened. “Wha-” Jim unleashed a primal cry as he descended on Arthur. He parried Jim’s blade away and tried to counter, but he squeezed the king’s wrist before he could get the chance, grinning in satisfaction when the king yelled in pain and dropped the sword. Jim made a fist and rammed it into Arthur’s stomach. He cried out as he flew back, his body slamming into a tree trunk. The king slumped to the ground.

“Morgana,” he croaked out, struggling to rise from the ground, “if you wish to prove your loyalty, assist me.”

“No,” she hissed, and a golden whip flickered to life in her hands. “It’s only because of you this youngling has had to resort to violent means. And now I must do the same!” She cracked the whip through the air. The weapon smacked into the knights, toppling them over.

“What are you doing, sister?!” Arthur demanded, finally getting to his feet.

“What I should’ve done years ago,” she snapped, the whip fizzing from existence. She extended the shadow staff to its full length, the silvery staff darkening with shadow magic.

“It was you!” Arthur yelled, retrieving Excalibur from the ground. “You defied me, freed those monsters, and now you pick another species over your own? What possesses you?!”

“Clarity of mind, brother!”

“Defend the king at all costs!” Merlin shouted, and he shot a beam of green magic at the sorcerers. Morgana quickly raised a golden shield, and the magic harmlessly bounced off it.

“You too, old man?” she said, scowling.

“I do what I must for the greater good!”

“Traitors!” she cried, whishing the staff through the air. “You throw us in chains, fearing what you cannot control, but we of magic are not lesser creatures. We are more!” She fired a golden ray at Merlin, but the wizard redirected away from them, and it exploded into a nearby tree.

“Stop!” Claire pleaded. “We found another way!”

“We can do this peacefully!” Douxie called. Jim’s hackles raised at the apprentice’s voice. Of course _he_ wanted peace. Did these humans not understand that the only true way to resolve problems was through battle? They _deserved_ to be slaughtered. It was a small price to pay for all the suffering they caused his kind.

“Morgana is right,” he boomed, and was it just his imagination, or was his voice deeper and more guttural? “The time for peace is long gone.”

“The youngling speaks truth!” Morgana declared, grinning. She rose into the air, and the knights gasped in shock. “You’re all against me, but I am more powerful than you know.” She started chanting an ancient spell, her body started glowing a blinding gold.

Jim smiled eagerly. He couldn’t wait to see what bloodshed would ensue-

A hand grabbed his arm, and he whirled towards it, snarling. But it was only Claire, and she looked scared and angry all at the same time.

“Jim, what is _wrong_ with you?” she hissed. “Do you _want_ to start a war?”

“Maybe I do,” he retorted, ripping his arm from her grasp. “The fleshbags deserve this and more.”

“Fleshbags?” Claire said incredulously. “When did you-” Her anger disappeared, and worry replaced it instead. “Jim, your eyes…” she reached to touch his face, but he jerked his face away, growling. She lowered her hand, trembling. “What’s wrong, Jim? This isn’t you.”

“Nothing’s wrong, I-” Then he saw, he _really_ saw, how distressed and frightened she was, and just like that, his fury subsided. He stumbled back, pressing a hand to his head. “What’s happening to me?” he whimpered.

Claire took his hands in her own and squeezed them. “I don’t know, but we’ll figure it out. We always do.” She released him and looked up at him, nothing but love and worry in her eyes. “But right now, you need to go.”

“I’m sorry, Claire, I-”

“Go!” she insisted, pushing him away. She then turned from him and joined the ongoing battle between Morgana’s shadow creations and the knights. Jim thought about staying for a split second before deciding he had caused enough trouble for one day. He darted from the clearing and deeper into the Wild Woods.

As he ran, he yanked the shard from his leg, and he cried in agony. He stumbled and nearly fell, but he was able to regain his balance and keep on running, albeit with a limp. A little thing like that shouldn’t cause so much pain, but somehow, it did. And with its extraction, all the power and wrath that had coursed through his body melted away. Now he was left feeling completely drained and exhausted, and he nearly collapsed. Warm blood trickled from the wound, but he ignored it, examining the onyx shard in his hand.

What exactly _was_ this thing? He knew something was off about it before, but its unwelcome invite into his leg had proved it was much more sinister than it appeared. It had made him feel so, _so_ angry and violent…but also immensely strong. Like he could do anything, win any fight. It was like it had brought out the true power of his troll side-

“There’s another one!” a knight shouted from the distance, distracting Jim from his thoughts.

_There’s a troll in danger!_ Stuffing the shard back in his pocket, he dashed to the noise, following the human scent.

“Trying to get away, beastie?” the knight taunted, approaching-

_Callista!_ With a yell, he jumped over a bush and rammed into the knight. As he stumbled back, dazed, Jim kicked him in the chest, sending him flying.

He turned to Callista, panting. “You okay?”

“I’ve been better,” she huffed. “But why aren’t you running, you idiot? Now we’re both going to die.”

“I told you before,” he grunted, helping her up and looping her arm over his shoulder, “no one gets left behind.”

She let her weight fall on him, clearly exhausted. She smiled at him before chuckling, “Oh, hey, feelings.”

The pair hobbled through the forest together, too sore and weary to run. Jim hadn’t felt this awful since the aftermath of the Eternal Night. He shuddered. If only a little puncture wound made him feel this sick, how bad would he feel if the whole shard went into his body? Good thing he would never let that happen.

After what seemed like hours (and probably was, since the sun had set long ago), Jim broke the silence. “Are we almost there?” he groaned. “I feel horrible.”

Callista peered ahead. “Yep,” she replied. “About time too.” She fell silent and looked down at her feet. “Thanks, by the way” she said softly. “You didn’t leave me to die, Jim. Most trolls would’ve, an outcast like me.”

“Hey, don’t make it weird-Callista!” he cried as she stumbled and collapsed. She didn’t move, but at least she was still breathing.

“You’re in bad shape,” he mumbled. He coughed, his wound throbbing painfully, and he fell to his knees. “And so am I, actually.” He started crawling, desperate to find help of any kind. “Help!” he called pitifully. “Can somebody help us please? _Anyone_?!”

Then Jim blinked in surprise. He surely must be hallucinating, because there was no way the troll standing before him was-

“Blinky?” he croaked.

“Pardon me?!” the six-armed troll crossed his arms and glared at him. “That’s Blinkous Galadrigal to you, youngling!”

Then Jim blacked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With that, a hint of full troll Jim is revealed at last. Hooray! And more angry boy Jim, another favorite!
> 
> Anyway, I just realized I unknowingly referenced Tangled with the "Fine, I'm the bad guy" line lol. And as soon as I wrote the 'don't make it weird' line I felt really sad 'cause I miss our boy Draalllllll (but it's okay he'll show up later hehe)
> 
> As for the fight scenes, I love watching them but they're so freaking hard to write, so apologies if they're short and a bit lackluster. 
> 
> I rewatched the next episode, and there's not too much to rewrite (thank God) so hopefully I'll see you guys before the month ends lol.


	4. Lady of the Lake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Jim meets an old (and surprisingly bad-tempered) friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, this chapter is quite a bit shorter than the previous chapters, because honestly, there wasn't too much to rewrite or add. I liked Douxie and Claire's bonding in this episode, so I didn't want to touch that, really. (Also, Jim had less than five minutes in this episode. I'm not kidding, he was barely in it and that makes me mad which is why I'm rewriting Wizards and okay I'll stop)
> 
> Also we're almost to 1.5k hits?! What?! You guys are too good to me I'm just glad people like this storyyyyyy
> 
> Some quotes are taken directly from the show and are not mine, they belong to Dreamworks.

Claire breathed deeply through her nose, and out through her mouth. In, out, in, out. She continued to repeat the exercise, reminding herself to just _breathe_.

“Hullgar!” a voice cried.

Her eyes snapped open, and she gasped at the scene before her. Merlin, Blinky, and Jim were planted in a defensive circle, weapons raised. A figure in dark green armor landed from above and approached her menacingly. The knight’s haunting yellow eyes seemed to bore into her very soul.

“Jim!” she screamed, falling to the ground. Darkness overcame her vision, and all she could hear was Jim’s furious roar and the clashing of swords. She rubbed her eyes, and the blackness dissipated. Jim was fighting the knight, but he was struggling to keep up with it. Every deflected blow sent him reeling, and his dodges from its jagged sword were getting narrower and narrower.

Then the knight kicked Jim in the chest, pushing him back. It raised its sword high over its head, ready to deliver the final blow-

Something inside Claire snapped. Power, strange but familiar all at once, surged through her. Her whole body tingled with it, from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. Her vision tinted purple. Finally, she couldn’t contain it any longer. With a yell, she lifted her hand. Black and violet magic burst from her palm and collided with the knight. The explosion sent it reeling, and Jim stared at her with-with _fear_.

“You’re like her!” he accused, backing away from her. “Get away from me!”

“N-no, I’m not. I’m just-Jim!” she cried, reaching for him as he disappeared. Then her hand grabbed onto a wrist, but it wasn’t Jim’s. It was Morgana, and Claire holding onto her was the only thing keeping her from falling off the cliff. Golden magic poured from her severed wrist.

“Gotcha!” Claire said, tightening her grip.

Morgana looked up at her, except it wasn’t Morgana anymore. _It was Claire_.

The other Claire cackled, her irises flaring purple in a pool of black. Claire shrieked and released her hand, but instead of falling, the other Claire soared into the air. Morgana’s cape flapped around her ankles. Her face was etched with dark veins.

“Little lamb,” the other Claire crooned. Claire shuddered at her voice. It was horrifying combination of her own and Morgana’s. “You’re _so_ much like me.”

“You’re wrong!” Even to her own ears, her voice sounded small and pathetic.

“Is that so?” other Claire chuckled. “Your magic is so very similar to the Eldritch Queen’s…and look what happened to her. Look what she _became_. What does that make you?”

“S-shut up!” Unwittingly, dark magic bloomed around her hands.

“You see?” other Claire mocked. “James Lake Jr. had his becoming. Now it’s time for yours.” She dived at Claire, eyes glowing hungrily.

“No, no, no, no, no, no!” she screamed, raising her arms for protection.

“ _NO!_ ” Claire’s eyes flew open. A shockwave of purple magic blasted from her and across the room. She collapsed onto her bed, too petrified from her nightmare to register that she had been floating.

“It wasn’t real,” she trembled, hugging her arms. “It wasn’t real, it wasn’t real…”

A book on a stand fluttered open from an unnatural wind. It settled on a page with a drawing of a girl touching a strange dark portal. The next picture showed the same girl, except she looked almost demonic, with fangs and jagged fingers. It was obviously a warning to people who practiced shadow magic…people like her.

“Oh, no,” she whispered in horror.

* * *

“I’m on a quest,” Steve sang, parading around the boat, “I’m on a quest, I’m on a quest! Finally, the knights will see me as the real man I am!” He kissed his biceps.

Douxie blanched. “Well, I can’t stomach any more of _that_ ,” he muttered, walking away from Steve. He looked at Claire, whose brow was pinched in worry, and decided to check up on her.

She glanced at him as he stood next to her. “Do you think Merlin’s plan will work?” she asked, holding a thick book steady on the rail.

“I messed up the timelines,” he admitted. “We’ve run out of options, and my choices haven’t exactly worked out lately.” The map spasmed, and he quickly shut it. He was so _done_ with that bloody trinket. “We can’t make any more mistakes. We’ll have to trust Merlin this time.”

“I just hope Jim made it out safe,” Claire said, gaze roaming over the cloudy gray sea.

“I hope so, too. That business in the forest was messy.”

“It was.” She chewed her lip worriedly before turning to him. “Speaking of Jim…there’s actually something I wanted to ask you about him.”

A trickle of sweat ran down Douxie’s neck. “Y-yeah. Go ahead!” he said, voice cracking on the last syllable.

She sighed and started, “It’s just…”

_Please, please don’t mention the big blue scary troll in the time map_ , he prayed.

“He was acting weird in the forest,” she burst out. “Like, _really_ weird.”

Douxie slumped in relief. “Ah, is that it? How so?”

“He…” she rubbed her temples. “He acted so-so _angry_. I’ve _never_ seen him like that, Douxie! He said he wanted war with the humans! The Jim I know would never say something like that. And when I tried to talk him out of it-” her eyes welled up, and she furiously wiped them, “he _growled_ at me. I-I’m just so worried about him,” she finished quietly.

Douxie felt a surge of sympathy for her, and he gently placed a hand on her shoulder. “Claire, I’m sure it’s just the stress of the situation getting to him. I mean, we’re already stressed out as humans, right? Trolls’ emotions are practically amplified a hundredfold. You add that up with his anger at how trolls were treated in this time period, and we have a Trollhunter who’s letting his troll side get the better of him. I’m sure his fury at Arthur was still lingering when you talked to him, and he accidentally let it out on you.”

“I guess that makes sense…” Claire started chewing her lip again, still in deep thought. “But also…when I tried to talk to him. His eyes-they were glowing red.”

Douxie promptly lost his grip on the time map, and it nearly fell into the ocean. He quickly snatched it back, his throat suddenly dry. Glowing red eyes? No…no, that wasn’t possible. He didn’t care what the time map showed; there was simply no feasible magical way for Jim to become- _that_.

But then again, Jim _had_ seemed rather… _savage_ in the forest. And hadn’t the impossible been done so, so many times before? So-

Then he saw Claire was still waiting for an answer, and he abruptly cleared his throat. “Oh? Er, red, you say?”

She frowned. “Yeah, red. Sort of like that troll’s in the-”

“ _That’s perfectly normal!_ ” Douxie yelped, drawing a glare from Merlin. He lowered his voice and urgently added, “Yes, perfectly normal for some trolls. After all, doesn’t your friend Argh’s eyes glow green when he is absorbed in battle?”

Claire stopped chewing her lip, considering Douxie’s words. “Yeah, you’re right…he does. He does!” She beamed at him. “Oh my gosh, how could’ve I forgotten that?! Thanks, Douxie!” She gave him a quick hug.

“N-no problem!” he stuttered, hesitantly returning it. She released him, grinning from ear to ear. “And you know what? I bet he’s nestled safely in the bosom of friendly trolls.”

“Heh,” Steve sniggered from the other side of the boat. “Bosom.”

* * *

Darkness. Sweet, quiet darkness. Jim sighed and wriggled in contentment. It had been who knows how long since he’s relaxed like this. He felt so warm and fuzzy inside, like he was being soaked in a hot bath. His chest started to vibrate gently, and soon, the whole room was filled with Jim’s deep purring.

A cold, damp towel patted his face, and Jim cracked his eyes open. He smiled at the sight of his mentor before closing his eyes once again. “Oh, Blink, it’s you. I just had the craziest dream.” He yawned sleepily.

“Did you, now?”

“Yeah, I was stuck in the past! And Steve had great hair and a goatee.” He rolled over on his side, burrowing deeper into his cloak. “Everything smelled bad, and Gunmar was still alive.”

“Gunmar the Black is very much alive,” Blinky retorted. “Clearly, he’s delusional. Snap out of it!” A slap was swiftly delivered to Jim’s face.

“Ow!” he protested, bolting upright. Then he was slapped again, and again, and again- “Stop it!” he cried, covering his face for protection. “Blinky, it’s me, Jim!”

“‘Blinky?!’” The six-eyed troll, usually so good-natured, narrowed his eyes in anger. “For the last time, it’s Blinkous Galadrigal to you, _outsider_!” He jabbed his finger to Jim’s chest before stalking off.

Then the memories came back to him in one crushing wave. Time travel. Camelot. Bular’s alive. And Gunmar. He slumped. “And my nightmare’s real.”

_Wait. The shard!_ Jim patted his pockets frantically. Where was it where was it where was it-

His hand rested on the familiar lump, and he sighed in relief. Then he frowned. Why…why did he want the shard in his possession so badly? It caused him to act so savagely in the forest, brought him so much pain, and yet he was _worried_ about it?

What was this thing doing to him?

“Pleased to make your acquaintance,” Dictatious Galadrigal said, grabbing Jim’s hand and shaking it firmly. He numbly returned the handshake, staring at him in shock. All thoughts of the shard dispelled as he drank in the sight of the seeing, six-eyed troll. He had gotten so used to Dictatious being blind that he kind of forgot he could originally see.

“Forgive my brother,” he apologized. _And he’s saying sorry too? What, were all villains nice back then?!_ “Your traveling companion was a little more hostile upon waking up.” He turned the other direction, and Jim winced at the purple bruise on the left side of his face.

“Hey, I startle easy. That’s on you,” Callista remarked from the other side of the room. Jim’s ears perked up, and he beamed. _She’s okay!_ he cheered.

“Of course _you’re_ here,” Blinky spat. “Whenever there’s calamity, there’s Callista.”

He pulled back a curtain, and Jim covered his face at the sudden light. When his eyes adjusted, he lowered his hand and gasped. “Whoa…where am I?”

It was like a mini-version of Trollmarket. Trolls milled about, carrying baskets of socks and hauling huge crates. With no electricity, the only light came from the large blue crystals protruding from the cave’s walls. The cavern ceiling was also much lower than it was in Trollmarket. If Trollmarket was a big city, then this place was a cozy, rural town.

“Dwoza, safe haven for trollkind,” Dictatious explained.

“You mean _some_ of trollkind,” Callista retorted.

“Ah…” Dictatious looked away almost shamefully, “how-how do you feel? Can you walk? We did our best to heal your wounds.”

Now that he mentioned it, Jim felt _a lot_ better. He didn’t feel sore or tired at all. In fact, he felt invigorated, ready to run a marathon at a moment’s notice. That must be one of the perks of being around a Heartstone. Even his pierced leg didn’t hurt!

Speaking of which…stabbing himself with a mystical rock definitely must’ve left a scar. He looked down at his leg through the hole in his pants. He was no longer bleeding, and miraculously, there was no puncture wound left from the shard, much less a scar. He traced his fingers over the stony skin and frowned. Scratch that. There _was_ a mark, a small, jagged one. But what was more concerning was the thin long cracks that ran from it. He’d never seen anything like it. Why were they there, and just how far did these go?...

Before Jim could investigate further, Blinky grabbed his cloak. “Ah, yes, don’t think I forgot about you, youngling!” He gestured at the dried blood. “How do you explain _that_ , hm? The blood is fresh too!”

Callista frowned. “I hate to agree with sixer here Jim, but…where did all that blood come from?”

He swallowed hard and stammered, “Uh…” _Come on Jim, think! Use that brain of yours for once!_ “I-I got hungry…and ate a rabbit.”

“I thought you left to fight those armored fleshbags,” she said slowly.

“And I did! I did.” He squirmed under their gaze. “Once I thought you were far enough away, I stopped fighting and left. But battling those guys gave me an appetite, so I stopped for, um, a snack.”

Callista snorted. “Makes sense to me. I’m just impressed you fought a whole battalion of knights and survived with barely a scratch on you.” She nudged him playfully. “You’re full of surprises, skinny.”

“Well I, for one, do _not_ think its makes any kind of logical sense!” Blinky exclaimed. “I smelled that blood, and it is definitely not one of a hare’s!”

Jim rolled his eyes. This past Blinky was really starting to get on his nerves. “If I remember right, you weren’t there when this happened. You were where again? Oh, right-cowering in your so-called ‘safe haven,’ where hardly any trolls are welcome.”

Blinky’s face contorted in anger. “We bring you back to health, and this is the thanks we get?! I think it’s about time for you two to leave!” He strode forward, grabbed Jim and Callista’s arms, and started dragging them to the exit of the room.

“Hey, hey, watch it! You have plenty more eyes to punch,” Callista warned.

Dictatious piped in, “Unfortunately, you outsiders have a habit of making things, um… _not safe_.”

“Which means we’ve no room for troublemakers here!” Blinky roughly shoved them past the open door. “Especially disrespectful ones!” he added, glaring at Jim.

“Some safe haven this is,” he muttered to Callista.

“Tell me about it,” she grunted, straightening, “I’ve been kicked out of this place before.”

“And it shall be done again,” Blinky said as he and his brother prodded them forward with sharp spears.

“Wha-where did you guys get spears?!” Jim exclaimed. His gaze trailed over Dwoza, at the trolls with forlorn expressions. All were carrying baskets of socks and dirty clothes, their steps slow and weary. “Uh, what’s going on here?”

“Preparation for the end times,” Dictatious answered brightly.

“Once we’ve gathered enough supplies, we will bravely and heroically…hide underground.” Blinky’s shoulders slumped. “Until this dreadful conflict blows over. And you’re not invited!” he snapped as Callista grabbed a sock, snatching it from her hands.

Wow. Jim had forgotten how scared and reclusive trolls used to be. Well, they were sort of like that when he first became the Trollhunter, but they weren’t nearly _this_ bad. Maybe fighting at the Battle of Killahead helped the-

The pieces clicked together, and his eyes widened in realization. The trolls _had_ to fight at the battle! Otherwise, Gunmar would win and history would be ruined and they’d never get back home and- “You have to fight!” Jim burst out. “It’s history, it has to happen, or-” he bit his lip, stopping himself from ranting more.

Oops. He couldn’t exactly tell them their role in the war was crucial to mankind’s very existence, so he would have to come up with some other reason. Jim groaned inwardly. He didn’t sign up for time travel, much less be the one responsible for the Battle of Killahead’s victory!

While Jim scrambled for something to say, Blinky sneered, “Or what, outsider? You seem to have lost your feisty tongue now!”

Jim’s desperation hardened into frustration, and he bit back a growl. “Listen,” he said as patiently as he could, “there’s a war coming, a war between humans and really, really bad trolls. You can’t keep your heads in the sand forever. Sooner or later, you’ll have to pick a side.”

“Who are you to tell Blinkous Galadrigal when to skirmish?” he jeered, poking Jim with his spear.

But the spear never connected with his body. Jim caught the spear, snarling. Okay, that was _it_. He had had enough of medieval England, enough of being hunted by humans, enough of things going wrong one after the other. Blinky’s snide attitude was all it took to push him over the edge.

He yanked the spear out of Blinky’s hands and snapped it in two. The pieces clattered to the ground. Growling, he approached the brothers, ignoring the gasps of the surrounding trolls.

"Now, now,” Dictatious said, holding his own spear out shakily, “why don’t you calm down so we can-”

“So you can what?” he hissed. “So you can kick me and Callista out of Dwoza, when we _clearly_ need the safety of it? So you can continue to hide down here, ignoring the problems of the surface until it comes crashing down on your heads? _NO_ ,” he wrenched Dicatious’s spear from his grip and tossed it aside.

“Jim,” Callista said, an urgent tone in her voice, “I’m not saying that I don’t agree with what you’re saying, but they _do_ have a guard troll here, and he won’t like this-”

“You want to know _why_ I can tell you when to fight?” Jim continued, ignoring Callista’s warnings, “it’s because I’m James Lake Jr., the Trollhu-”

The stone gate crashed down, sending up a plume of dust. The whole cavern shook as boulders fell to the ground. Anyone near the gate was thrown back by the force of the crash. And out of the rubble, a familiar face emerged.

“The Gumm-Gumms have arrived!” Dictatious shrieked. “Everybody, _run_!” 

While the other trolls screamed and ran for cover, Jim was frozen in place. He could only stare in disbelief at the sight of one of his oldest friends.

Argh slammed his fists down, smashing the stones to dust. He scowled, his eyes glowing an ominous green. His horns were wickedly sharp, and white war paint decorated his face, chest, and arms. Spiky black armor protected his shoulders and wrists. In short, he looked nothing like the gentle giant Jim knew, and it pained him to see his friend like this.

“Argh bring message,” he boomed. “Join Gunmar, or _die_.” He smacked an unfortunate troll across the cave before ripping out a ferocious roar.

Jim took a step forward, then hesitated. He knew he had to fight him, but he just _couldn’t_. Even though Argh wasn’t his friend now, he would be later on. He couldn’t bring himself to-

The shard pulsed, and suddenly, an irresistible urge to fight washed over Jim. He looked at Argh, and instead of seeing a future friend, he saw a rampaging opponent that needed to be stopped. This Argh was the general of the Gumm-Gumm army. As of now, he was an enemy of the Trollhunter.

“These cowards won’t even defend their own home,” Callista huffed. She grabbed a spiky mallet from a crate and winked. “Looks like it’s just you and me, skinny.”

He grinned back, his body quivering in the anticipation of a fight. His tusks gleamed in the crystal light. “Wouldn’t have it any other way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The shard is affecting Jim even when it's not in his body? Zoinks that doesn't bode well...
> 
> Yes, none of that pacifist Jim bs in the next chapter! I mean, it's sweet and all, but come ON, we all wanted to see troll Jim duke it out with Argh. So I'm going to write a fight scene, gosh dang it! (And yes, the sixer comment was a reference to gravity falls because that show is perfection)
> 
> See you guys next month I have a feeling this next chapter is going to be a longgggg one


End file.
